Warm Memories and Brotherly Bonds
by RoseDragonWitch
Summary: In the middle of some strange ruins on a mysterious island, Luffy has disappeared. As the rest of the Straw Hats try to find him, they end up travelling through his memories and are trapped in the past, with no idea to how to get out or how to find their captain. But not all things are meant to be seen… how will they take to seeing what had Luffy been hiding from them?
1. The Mystery Rock and the Strange Ruins

**Chapter 1: The Mystery Rock and the Strange Ruins**

The sun was shining down just as a cool sea breeze came drifting softly over the railing; seagulls flocked above them casting the only shadows on the deck of the Thousand Sunny. The Straw Hat Pirates were up and each was enjoying the nice day…

Nami was in the library, catching up on two years of maps and charts from her time on Weatheria; she kept the window open so that she could enjoy the light sea breeze… for once able to relax without worrying about the change of weather thanks to that clear blue sky. Zoro was in the crow's nest, busy lifting weights—occasionally glancing out the window at the sea, just making sure there wasn't any danger. Usopp was up near Robin's flowers and Nami's orange trees tending his garden of Pop Greens. He had set up a small area where he could continue to grow them which he dubbed the, 'Usopp Garden' and here he was able to mass produce the Pop Greens without fear of ever running out. He glanced up at the bright sun and smiled widely at the warm air before he went back to work tending his precious arsenal.

Chopper was on deck, lying on the grass and letting his plants dry out in this hot weather while he drank the icy lemonade that Sanji made. Not for the first time, he hated the fact that he couldn't stand the warm weather as well as his friends could. He was fine in cold weather… but if he wasn't careful, even a sunny day could be miserable. However, he grinned and bore it as he listened to Brook's music. Brook was on the swing with a cup of tea sitting next to him as he played his newest song on his guitar… 'Bone to be Wild!' He laughed as Chopper applauded him when he finished and asked for another.

"Yohohoho," Brook laughed joyfully, strumming the guitar, "As you wish!" And at once, he started up with his personal favorite… 'Bink's Sake'.

Just at that moment, Sanji came out of the kitchen, a lit cigarette in his mouth, taking relief for the quick breath of fresh air after having been inside cooking over a hot stove all day. He breathed in deeply before he called out to them all, "Lunch will be ready in another hour!"

"SUUUUPPPPER!" yelled another familiar voice from across the ship and Franky was lying out on the deck, working on his tan. Next to him, Robin giggled lightly as she stretched out on her lawn chair, enjoying a new book on history that she had bought from the last town they had been at. She reached over to take a sip of her lemonade before she went back to reading about the most common legends in the New World.

While on the starboard side, the captain, Straw Hat Luffy was enjoying fishing. He tilted his hat back until it was hanging around his neck as he began nodding his head to Brooks's music; he cast the line out as far as it would go. When he finally got a bite he cried out excitedly, "HEY! I GOT SOMETHING!"

He then pulled with all his might, and with a great slash, something small and round came bursting out of the sea. Stretching his arm out, he grabbed hold of it, thinking it was a fish… only to pull it back and realize that it was a rock. Frowning in disappointment, he was about to throw it back when he noticed something strange about it.

It looked as if it had once been a perfectly round stone and about as big as one of Nami's oranges—but at some time it had been sliced clean in half as if Zoro had gotten through with it. But what fascinated him the most was the fact that it was glowing slightly… like there was a faint light inside it.

Luffy stared down at it in amazement, before he tried to take a bite out of it… only to end up almost breaking his teeth. "OWWW!" he yelled out loud before he looked at it again. "Hey guys! Check it out!"

"What is it?" Sanji asked, looking over the side with a frying pan in his hands. "Did you catch something we can eat?"

"Nah," Luffy answered holding it up to show him. "We can't eat it… I already tried. It looks really neat though…"

"If we can't eat it, we don't need it," Sanji said firmly, turning away and heading back to the kitchen.

"But look!" Luffy called as he held it up, "It's glowing! How many rocks do you see do that?!"

"Really?!" Chopper cried in excitement, coming over to see it. "Oh, wow!" he exclaimed in wonder. "It's glowing! I've never see a glowing rock before. It's not even hot."

"Yeah, neat right?" Luffy laughs, pulling his straw hat up and onto his head as they continued to look at it.

"Yohoho," Brook said, leaning over to look at it. "Such a mystery," he said in awe. "So amazing to see, I feel as if my eyes will pop out! Ah! Not that I have eyes, Yohohoho."

Luffy laughed as he held it up to the sun to get a better look at it. But at that moment, they heard Zoro's voice calling out from above, "Hey! I think There's an island dead ahead!"

"Really? An island?!" Luffy cried out excited, putting the rock into his pocket before he went running off to the Sunny's lion head and stared out ahead of him, squinting to see the narrow strip of land appear in front of him.

"ISLAAAND!" he cried out happily, his thoughts on the 'mystery rock' completely leaving his mind as he jumped up and down in eagerness. "Islaaaaannd!" he yelled out loudly before turning to the others. "There really is an island! Quick! Let's go! Full speed ahead!"

Hearing the shouting, Usopp turned to where the Sunny's 'Brain' was and called out, "Nami! Do you see it? There's a…"

"I know!" Nami's amused voice called as she stuck her head out the window to look at them. "Kinda hard not to with all the shouting going on!"

"Naaaaaaaaami-swan!" Sanji cried, hearts in his eyes as he stood below her and called up, "I hope you're hungry! I devote this entire meal to you!"

"Thanks," she called with a little wave before she checked the Log Pose. "Yep," she called, shading her eyes from the bright sun and looked ahead where the small island gradually began to grow larger by the second. "One of the needles is definitely pointing to it."

"Oh, Boy!" Luffy cried out in anticipation. "Our next island in the New World! I can't wait!"

Closer and closer they sailed, with Luffy growing more impatient with each second. Usopp and Chopper on either rise of him, also beaming and jumping around, wondering just what kind of island they were going to set foot on this time.

When they were close enough, they could see that most of the island was covered in grassy fields and flowers, but they were also near a long, winding river that seemed to lead them close to a dense forest much farther back.

"Let's follow the river," Nami called to them, having come down and was now standing with the others. "Those trees look like a good place to help hide the Sunny."

"Awesome!" Luffy cried out, pointing to the trees eagerly. "I've gotta climb one of those trees! They're huge!"

"Yeah!" Usopp agreed in relief. "This looks like a quiet little island."

"Yeah, it's nice!" Chopper added in brightly, a big grin on his face. "I hope the people here are just as nice."

"So long as there aren't any monsters here," Usopp added worriedly, glancing around as if he thought that there were invisible monsters starting to surround them.

"Ahh, no worries," Luffy said, now bouncing up and down on the balls of his feet, ready to get off the ship and onto the grass. A few minutes later, the ship entered the forest, and was almost completely out of sight of the ocean. Once there, the three trouble makers jumped off without a second thought.

"Hey, hold on!" Nami called to them all as they rolled in the grass and laughed. "We don't know where we are! It could be dangerous!"

"Don't see what the problem is," Sanji said coming up with them. "We can see everything here, and there doesn't seem to be other inhabitants so far."

"Yeah, but Sanji," Nami said in worry. "This is the New World! Who knows what we could find here."

"Don't worry," said another voice and Zoro came sliding down from the crow's nest, a towel over his shoulders as he dried off the sweat. "They can handle themselves if there's anything here."

Soon, the rest of the crew got off the ship and back onto solid ground, but soon as they started exploring, the sky started to became darker and some clouds pushed and forebodingly crossed in front of the sun. Immediately Usopp stopped laughing and froze in mid-chase of playing tag with Chopper. He looked up to Nami and called, "Oi! Nami! That sky doesn't look so friendly! Are we in any danger?"

Nami glanced up at the sky before she frowned slightly. "I think that there's a good chance that there will be a storm later. If that's the case, then it's a good thing that we came here when we did. I don't want to be out in the middle of the ocean if a big storm hits."

"But we should be safe here right?" he called. "Not…" he added quickly, "Not that I'm scared or anything! After all, Usopp, brave warrior of the sea, always laughs in the face of danger!"

"For now we seem to be safe," Nami called, still looking up at the sky. "We might be here until we're sure the storm's passed. But as long as we keep an eye on those clouds, we should be just fine. But stay on guard guys! Remember, this is the New World, anything can happen here!"

"Phew. That's good." Usopp sighed in relief as he rejoined Luffy and Chopper.

"Does anybody know where we are?" Chopper asked merrily as he watched Luffy stretch his arm out to grab a high branch and rocketed up.

"It doesn't look like a place where people live," Robin stated, pushing her sunglasses up onto her forehead, her book still in her hands. "More likely a nesting place monsters."

"What?" Chopper cried out in panic. "You really think that there're monsters here?"

"YOW! Robin, you really need to stop scaring them for your own entertainment," Franky told her as she merely smiled back innocently.

Usopp secretly wiped his sweat away and forced a laugh. "Don't worry, Chopper!" he cried out, jerking a thumb to his chest. "Even if this place is swarming with blood-thirsty monsters, the brave 'Pop Greens Master Usopp' will be here to take care of them all!"

"Really…? Awesome, Usopp!" Chopper cheered, beaming up at him like he was a great hero.

"Come on then! Let's go!" Luffy cried out swinging from tree to tree, without any worry in the world. After spending at least a week at sea, it felt good to be on land and exploring the island. They wandered through the grassy fields, Chopper stopping to gather flowers, and looking for any other signs of humans.

"Do you think there are any inhabitants here?" Robin asked them.

"Doesn't look like it," Nami said smiling around at them. "If I had to guess, I'd say that it's uninhabited. And so far, I don't see any monsters." Just at that moment, Sanji came tearing out of nowhere, hearts in his eyes as he dropped to his knees and held out two large bouquets of flowers to the two of them.

"Though these flowers are beautiful," he cried out passionately, his arms outstretched to them both. "They are nothing compared to the beauty of you two!"

Zoro, who had been leaning up against a tree rolled his eye, sighing. "Dumbass…" he murmured, clearly audible, and suddenly Sanji's attitude changed from romantic to hatred as he spun around and glared at Zoro.

"What was that?" he demanded.

"You heard me, Mr. Nosebleed," he shot back.

"You wanna go, Moss Head?"

"That does it! I'm going to shut you up once and for all!"

As the two of them started fighting each other, Luffy burst out laughing and cried out, "Come on! Let's go! Let's find some meat! Some meeeaaaat!" and before anyone could stop him, he bolted through the grass and into the dense forest.

Nami cried out, "Hey, Luffy wait!" but it was too late, he was long gone.

"Men… so typical," she sighed as she shot an annoyed glance at Zoro and Sanji who were going at each other, with Zoro pulling out two of his swords and Sanji aiming a swift kick at his head. "I swear, they haven't changed at all in two years," she hissed to Robin, who giggled as she smelled the flowers that Sanji brought them.

Nami then put her long hair back into a ponytail as she called to the others, "Hey! You guys! Someone go and see if they can find some fresh water and food. And check up on Luffy to make sure he doesn't do anything stupid."

"Don't see how he can in a boring place like this," Franky said with a loud yawn.

"Did you forget who we're dealing with?" Usopp asked, his eyebrows raised. "He always gets into some kind of trouble."

They spent most of the day exploring, and Nami taking measurements for her next map. They had managed to find fresh water and fruit trees, but Luffy had grown depressed not having found any good meat.

"Maaan, Sanji? I'm hungry!" Luffy whined, pouting. "There's nothing else on this island!"

"Would you calm down?" Sanji snapped at him. "You just ate half an hour ago! Wait until dinner."

Luffy pouted at him angrily before he caught sight of Brook with his guitar. "Yohohoho," Brook said happily. "What a peaceful place. It is so calming to the eyes… ah! Not that I have eyes. Yohohoho!"

"Well, the good news is that I think the storm is passing on," Nami called from on top of the hill, her telescope and papers in front of her as she kept looking through it to get the correct measurements. "Once we're sure of that, we only have to wait a few more hours before we can get the Log Pose reset and then we can move on."

"Hopefully somewhere with meat," Luffy pouted.

Nami rolled her eyes in a good-natured way as she put her eyes back to the eyepiece; but when she moved it slightly to get a better angle, she saw something. "Whoa, what's that?" she whispered to herself as she strained her eyes to make out what it was through the trees. "Hey, guys!" she called to them. "I think I see something!"

They all glanced up.

"See something?" Zoro called, having just woken up from his nap. He let out a long yawn as he asked, "See what? Something to eat?"

"Oh!" Luffy called eagerly. "Meat! Meat! Meat! Do you see any meat Nami!?"

"No, you idiot!" she called exasperated. "I can't tell exactly what it is, but from here it, looks like some old temple or something in the forest?"

Robin immediately looked up from her book. "What did you say?"

"I said that it looks like some kind of old house or temple in the middle of the forest," she called, finally looking up. "It doesn't look like anything special though…?"

Robin closed her book with a snap and stood up with gleam in her eyes. "Well, might as well go and check it out while we're here," she answered with a bright smile. "This is the New World after all, still unexplored territory so it might still be filled with tons of old relics. Who knows, it could be something valuable…"

Beri marks suddenly appeared in Nami's eyes and she called after her, "I'll come too!"

***Later***

"Nami!" Usopp complained from the back of the group. "Any reason why you insisted that we all go in a group?"

"In case there are some monsters of course," she shot back at him, wiping seat from her brow as they continued their march through the forest. They each had drawn straws back at the ship, and in the end, it was Robin, Nami, Zoro, and Usopp who had won and were part of the team. Luffy hadn't bothered drawing and came with them anyway as he looked around at the dense trees with a goofy smile. "Besides, I'm sure that Chopper, Sanji, Franky, and Brook can take care of themselves. The ruins I saw are small. In fact, it was hard to say for sure they were ruins."

"Either way, it's worth checking it out, if only for a few minutes," Robin said, leading the way. "You sure it was this way?"

"I'm sure," Nami said with certainty. "I may not be strong like you guys, but no one can read a map better than me."

Luffy, who had been swinging on vines through the trees, had caught Usopp's attention and he let out a loud cry of delight and went to find vines of his own.

"Don't see what's so fun about that," Nami said waving her hand dismissively.

"Shows how much you know," Robin laughed. "There are some things that little boys never grow out of!"

"That's for sure," Nami whispered as she watched the two swinging around like monkeys. "Well, just make sure that they don't hurt themselves Zoro."

"Why am I here again?" he demanded crankily.

After about an hour of walking, they soon came to a large clearing devoid of trees. Standing there was indeed a crumbling ruin, covered in green moss and vines. It looked like it had once been a large temple but was now falling victim to time. The walls were old and damaged—the whole building was an oval shape, almost like a mini coliseum, covered in ancient writing that was mostly worn away.

Eyes bright, Robin walked forward, tracing her hand along the stone wall.

"Wow," Usopp said gazing at it with interest, shielding his eyes with one hand so that he could get a better look at it without the sun's rays. "Look at it. It must be several hundred years old."

"More or less," Robin said, wandering around the other side, examining every inch. "And if I had to say, I would guess that this was, indeed, a temple."

"A temple?" Luffy asked, having found a few fruit trees on the way here and was now enjoying apples as he watched her examine it. "For what?"

"Hard to say," Robin answered, continuing to look at it. "But it's definitely seen better days. If I had to guess, I would say that this place is over eight hundred years old."

"Whoa!" Usopp cried out in shock. "It's _that_ old?"

"So there really where people on this island at one point?" Zoro asked, looking up at the stone wall that showed pictures of the phases of the moon.

"Possible," Robin admitted. "However, this seems to be the only man-made structure on this island. If this was indeed inhabited at one point, either all other traces of buildings simply wore away with time, or this place was considered special and this was the only building here to begin with."

She studied the pictures of the full moon, the crescent moon, and all the way to the half moon until she noticed that there was something very strange. Running her hand over the picture of the half moon, she realized what it was. "Hey, you guys!" Robin called. "Look at this." They all ran around to join her at the stone wall as Robin was tracing the ancient words with a finger.

"What is it?" Zoro asked, walking forward to see what she was looking at.

"This appears to be some kind of door," she answered, moving back some of the moss to see. "Let's see," she said softly.

"What's it say?" Usopp asked as Luffy came jumping over.

"Is it something good?" Luffy asked, his cheeks full of fruit.

Robin frowned a little as she read out, "It says… _'Beyond these doors you will discover your greatest treasure_… _but to reach it, you must face the darkest shadows of your soul'._"

"Treasure?!" Nami cried out, her eyes becoming beri marks again. "Did you just say _our greatest treasure_?! What are we waiting for?! Let's get it! It's right through this door right?"

"H-hold on!" Usopp yelled, waving his hands around dramatically. "Didn't you hear what Robin said? _'The darkest shadows of our souls?!'_ What the hell does that mean?"

"What's the point in waiting around wondering?" Zoro said with a rather evil grin. "I say we go in and see for ourselves!"

"Treasure!" Luffy said in excitement, ready for the next adventure as he took hold of the door and pushed.

"Hey! WAIT!" Usopp yelled, but too late, Luffy had pushed the door open and walked in. They were all standing in the middle of a stone room, the ceiling wasn't there, and instead there was a bright sky right above them. But in front of them there wasn't anything but a small, stone platform.

"You mean there's really no treasure here?" Nami asked, sounding disappointed and depressed. "I knew it. I knew that it was too good to be true."

"Aw man," Luffy said angrily.

"You see?" Usopp called to the others as Robin approached the platform and examine it. "Someone must've been here a long time ago and took whatever treasure was here! Now that we're done here, let's just go!"

"Hold on," Robin said.

"What is it, Robin?" Zoro asked. "You find something?"

She merely held up the stone that had been sitting at the altar and stared at it.

"A rock?" Nami asked in frustration. "What? That's it? Am I missing something? What's so special about it?"

"But look at it," she said, holding it out for them to see. It was in the same shape as the half moon on the door, and it was glowing slightly in her hands as if there was light inside. Luffy leaned forward, a frown on his face as his brain started to hurt from trying to remember where he'd seen it before.

"Ah! I don't know!" he finally called out.

"Don't know what?" Zoro asked him in annoyance. But at that moment, there was a feeble light shining from Luffy's pocket.

"Hey, Luffy, what's that?" Usopp asked and Luffy looked to see what he was talking about before he pulled out the stone.

"Oh, cool!" he cried out. "The Mystery Rock!"

The stone in his hands was glowing brightly. "Where did you get that, Luffy?" Robin asked at once, staring at it.

"It's what I found fishing!" Luffy laughed, holding it up, glowing like a hot coal in his hands, but still cool to the touch. "It's a Mystery Rock!"

"That's strange," Usopp said, staring at the two glowing rocks in their hands. "They look like they're…"

But then Luffy's hand shot out and took the other half of the stone in Robin's hands and grinned as he held the two pieces up. "Check it out!" he said happily. "A perfect…"

"Luffy wait!" Usopp called in panic.

"Fit!" and he clashed the two stones together. For a moment, nothing happened, but then the two halves melted together until you couldn't tell that they had ever been broken. That was when the light from the stone began to glow so brightly that he had to shut his eyes against them. When he opened them again, he was suddenly drifting in a sea of darkness with a single ball of light shining in front of him.

"Whoa!" he called out. "Hey guys! Look at this!"

But as he looked around him, he realized that he was alone.

"Ah? Guys?" he called. "Where'd you all go?"

"Do you wish to find your treasure?" the light said.

"Huh?" he asked in surprise, "Oh! You're the Mystery Rock! How are you talking?" he then realized what the rock said and asked eagerly, "Wait, Treasure? Did you say treasure?"

"To discover your treasure you must face your biggest regrets," the rock's light said.

The grin faded from his face. "Regrets? What regrets? What're you talking about? Hey, how's a rock know how to talk anyway?"

But instead of answering, it began to shine brightly again.

"Again?" Luffy cried in frustration, shielding his eyes. "Can you stop glowing like that?"

But no sooner were the words out of his mouth did the light die down little by little… but when it did, he was no longer alone… though the bright light Luffy ended up seeing a familiar face. A face that he had wished he could see again for two years…

Messy black hair, childish freckles across his cheeks, a wide mischievous grin…

Luffy's face paled as he stared at him… "Ace…?" he croaked out. "Is that you?"

**(What do you think so far? A Straw Hats watching memories fic?)**


	2. Down the Rabbit Hole

**Chapter 2: Down the Rabbit Hole**

Luffy was sitting on a cliff face overlooking the sea. It was a place that he was very familiar with… the same place where he once shared his dreams with both of his brothers… and later the place where Ace had made him a very important promise…

Ace…

He looked beside him to see Ace sitting right there with him looking like he remembered. His serious expression with a splash of freckles across his face… his two tattoos—the Whitebeard symbol on his back, which was once his pride, and the ASCE tattoo on his arm. He tilted his trademark orange hat with two blue smileys, back so that he could look at him and grinned wildly. They both sat silently on that cliff, neither one saying anything as they looked at the sparkling blue sea… a sea that they always thought of as Sabo's Ocean.

The soft breeze that gently blew Luffy's hair about his face as he looked at the water—remembering the promise he and Ace made when they were kids and lost Sabo.

"You know…" Ace said, his voice sounding as it had always been. "I'm sorry that I couldn't keep that one promise to you."

"I know," Luffy answered, looking at him. "You promised me that you'd never die… I get it now that you couldn't keep it… but you did end up keeping another promise now that I'd think about it…"

Ace grinned back as he stood up and held out his hand to him. "I know how hard it is to say goodbye…"

Luffy reached up to take his hand, but as soon as he did—he could smell the scent of blood and burning skin. He could feel the hot blood splattered on his hands and arms—the heat of the fire that tore through Ace's chest…

Luffy's eyes snapped open and he was gasping for breath. He wasn't on the cliffside anymore as his eyes looked around almost in a panic. Instead, he was lying on the floor of the temple that they'd been exploring before he blacked out. He was breathing hard, almost painfully, as his eyes stared up above him at the twilight sky…

He breathed hard as he shut his eyes again, feeling relief…

It had been a long time since he dreamt of his brother's death. After the war ended and he began his training with Rayleigh, he had those same nightmares every night for months… it was what drove him to give it his all in training and help to calm his mind. It was the first time in awhile since he had that nightmare…

He opened his eyes and looked around to see that Zoro, Nami, Robin, and Usopp were there as well and he felt that terrible weight lift off his mind at the sight of his sleeping crewmates. They all looked to be alright, just sleeping. He smiled as he started to get up… until he realized that he couldn't. He was stuck.

Blinking in horror, he tried desperately to move, but his body felt as if he had heavy chains keeping him trapped there. The last time he could remember feeling like this was when he gave it his all to fight that pigeon bastard. But even then, it was because he felt weak and was in pain.

Here, he was just stuck…

Something was keeping him from moving…

Gritting his teeth, Luffy fought with all his strength, but he might've have had his limbs made of solid lead for all the good it did. It was just no use.

"What's going on here?" he demanded, but when he opened his mouth, no sound came up.

He froze. What was happening here? Again, he fought to raise his arms, to just move his fingers as he shouted out into the distance. But there was nothing… no voice, no movement at all. Now growing angry he could feel the blood rushing to his head as he now, almost desperately, fought against whatever was holding him back.

Just then he could hear a strange cracking sound. He stopped struggling and focused listening as his eyes looked around. He couldn't see anything, but he could sense something here. It wasn't like a 'wild beast' feeling though… this felt like something much more… different.

Luffy couldn't figure out how to explain it… and then suddenly he felt something grab hold of his ankle. His eyes widen as he tried to look down to see what it was but couldn't even do that much. He was now growing angrier with each passing second as he felt the thing around his ankle wrap its way around his leg and stretching up to his waist.

He then felt something twist itself around his wrist, and forced his eyes to look down. But when he looked, he couldn't see anything holding him there… all he could see was the 'Mystery Rock' in his hands that was still sparkling slightly as he felt his body slowly being dragged away…

***Zoro***

The last thing that Zoro saw before he was blinded by all the white light was Luffy putting those two rocks together. He now had a slight headache and had only just come too… he felt sick and didn't want to open his eye as he lay there on the cold stone, trying to think back to whatever it was that hit him. But as he started to drop off to sleep again, he felt as if something was creeping across the ground near him.

Forcing his eye open, wincing a little at the bright light, he blinked several times to make sense of what was going on around him. He was leaning up against the stone wall of the temple that they had been at when he realized that there was something wrong.

The stone altar that had been there a second ago had vanished, and instead there was a round hole in the ground, big enough to fit even Franky inside. He tried to get up, but suddenly, he felt as if he had a whale on his chest; he was having trouble moving. He could move his head around and was glad to see that his crew was there. All four of them were asleep, but unharmed.

Good, now if he could only get his ass moving…

Just then, that horrible creeping feeling came back and he stopped as he turned his head back to the hole. There was something there… something was crawling up. He waited, almost aching for something to come up.

And finally, something did… it looked like a snake at first… until he realized it was some kind of root. It was jet black and looked gnarled from age as it came creeping out of the hole and across the temple floor.

Zoro tried to move harder than ever, his hand now trying to go to his swords, but he couldn't even get his limbs to twitch as he struggled. Just then, slithering along like some beast, the root-like thing finally came towards Luffy, who was lying the closest to the hole. He was lying on his back, fast asleep, as the vines suddenly twisted itself around his ankle and bind his leg.

Feeling anger surging in him, he tried to get up—and this time, he did end up finally moving, but he was light-headed and felt sick, as he fell face-first on the stone.

Just what the hell was wrong with him? Why couldn't he move?

He struggled to get back up, but he was struggling to keep his eye open as he felt like his mind overcome with a thick fog. Meanwhile, Luffy was still being bound tightly by the roots that crept up his body and started to circle up around his chest and arms… and then very slowly started to pull him across the ground.

"L-Luffy!" Zoro called loudly, but his voice came out in a stuttered as he struggled back up, only to fall back as if someone had hit him over the head with a thousand pound weight. The last thing that he saw before he blacked out was Luffy slowly being pulled into the hole.

***Later***

"Zoro? Zoro-san?" called a familiar voice as if far away. Groaning loudly, Zoro opened his eye and blinked ahead. Standing above him was the familiar skeletal face of Brook—and though it was hard to tell with a skeleton, there was an air of worry about him.

"B-Brook?" he croaked out, trying to make sense of what was going on.

"Oh!" Brook called out happily. "It is so good to see you all safe and sound! Yohoho! I was filled with such worry it felt as if my heart would burst. Though I have no heart to begin with. Yohohoho!"

Zoro forced himself to sit up—for some reason, now able to move easily, just a little tired as though he slept in for too long. Chopper, Sanji, and Franky were all there as well and trying to wake up the others who were all still fast asleep on the ground. Blinking in confusion, he looked up to the sky to see that it was a deep red color.

"We were so worry about you all when you didn't come back," Brook explained, stepping back as Zoro got to his feet, a little dizzy. "Sanji-san got worried about Robin-san and Nami-san so he insisted on coming out to check on you all."

"Great," Zoro groaned as he got up, rubbing his head where a slight headache was taking place, quickly getting over his dizziness as he tried to remember what the hell happened.

Sanji—who had been trying to wake the girls—turned to glare up at him. "You idiot!" he yelled. "What happened here? How could you let something happen to Nami and Robin?"

"Would you shut up, Nosebleed?" he snapped at him, staring around him.

"Yow, Chopper, how are they?" Franky asked Chopper who was now examining a sleeping Usopp and looked up to them, "They don't seem to be injured. It's more like they just fainted or even just fell asleep." He looked up to Zoro and said happily, "I'm so relieved to see that you're ok!"

"Yeah," Zoro said, one hand on his head. "I'm feeling fine. But what happened?"

"We were going to ask you that," Franky stated, who had been leaning up against the temple wall, completely at ease. "We were waiting for hours but you never came back."

"We were all so worried we had to come and check what was taking so long!" Chopper called as Usopp let out a groan and began to stir. "Oh Usopp!" Chopper said relieved. "You're alive!"

Usopp blinked his eyes open, wincing at the bright light. "I am?" he repeated dully. He shut his eyes again for a moment as if he was about to fall back asleep until he sat bolt-upright and stared around him in panic. "What happened? Where's that light? What are we doing here? What's going on?"

That last part ended in a bit of a plea for help as he stared around him in worry.

"You don't know what happened either?" Sanji demanded, looking from him to Zoro and back. "What were you all doing here?"

"Look, I told you I don't know!" Zoro yelled in frustration. "We were all looking around and then there was a glowing rock…"

"A glowing rock?" Chopper repeated in puzzlement. "You mean like the one that Luffy found?"

"Hey, speaking of Luffy-san, where is he?" Brook asked, looking around, as if expecting to see Luffy pop up at any moment.

Zoro looked up at once, suddenly remembering what happened and quickly started to search for the hole. But there wasn't anything… all he could see was the altar in the center of the temple's circle… no trace of Luffy. "You mean he's not here?" he asked at once.

"We just got here," Sanji said darkly. "When we found the place, we found you all lying here like this just a few minutes ago. None of us have seen Luffy yet…"

"So it was just the four of us?" Usopp asked in worry, rubbing his head. "But… where's Luffy?"

"He wouldn't have just left," Franky said as Chopper checked on the two women, the two of them slowly starting to come too as well. "He's got to be around here somewhere."

"I don't feel him anywhere though," Zoro said, using his Haki to try and sense his presence, but not picking up anyone else on the island but the eight of them.

"Neither do I," Sanji agreed uncomfortably. "I felt something bad a while ago and I had to know what was going on. What's this about a glowing rock?"

As Zoro explained about what happened, the girls had come to. "Ow, ow," Nami groaned, her hand going to her head as she blinked awake. "That idiot. What was he thinking?"

"Nami! Oh no are you alright?" Sanji called as he came to her immediately. "Don't worry my love! I swear that I'll be by your side until I am convinced that you make a complete recovery."

"Enough, lover-boy," Nami snapped as she glanced around at the ruins. "What?" she demanded in outrage. "Where's my treasure?!"

"Treasure?" Chopper repeated in confusion. "What treasure?"

"The treasure that was mentioned on the door of course!" Nami told them irritably as she brushed herself off and stood up. "I remember it saying something about treasure and…"

"You still going on about that?" Usopp demanded loudly. "We've got bigger things to worry about. What about Luffy? Where is he?"

"You mean he's not here?" she snapped at him, running a hand through her long hair in irritation, "Damn, doesn't he know what a hassle he is? I swear, I don't know what is wrong with that guy." She then heard a sigh next to her and looked over to see that Robin had just opened her eyes and was looking at her sleepily. "Oh, Robin!" she said anxiously, going to her side to see if she was alright.

"Robin-chan! My dear, how are you feeling? Are you sure that you're ok?" Sanji said as Robin sat up and got quickly to her feet.

"What just happened?" she asked.

"We're still in the ruins," Nami explained, now rubbing her forehead to clear her thoughts. "Apparently after we saw that light we passed out and now Luffy's missing. I don't know what to do with him."

"No," Robin said, turning back to the altar. "This isn't good. We've got to find him now."

"What's wrong, Robin?" Chopper asked in a scared voice. "Did something really bad happen?"

Robin knelt by the shrine and looked at the ancient writing that was covering the platform. She bit her lip and said, "I was afraid of this."

"What?" Nami asked. "What are you afraid of?"

"Yeah, cause you're kinda freaking me out," Usopp said, hiding behind Franky. "This is a bad place isn't it?"

Rather than answer, Robin reached into her bag and pulled out the book that she had been reading for the last few days. She flipped through it, searching for something as Zoro asked, "Robin, you mind telling us what this is all about?"

"Here," Robin said standing up and turning towards them. "I was afraid of this. I thought that this sounding familiar. These ruins are part of an ancient temple that once housed the Reminiscence Stone."

"The what?" they all repeated in confusion.

"What's the Reminiscence Stone?" Sanji asked.

"It's a magical artifact that acts like a sort of key," she answered without looking up. "According to this, years ago there was some kind of door that was locked and the stone that acted as the way to open it was broken apart. Whatever was sealed here was so powerful that it was decided to be close for good and then the key was broken into two halves. One half was kept here in the temple, but the other was thrown out to sea."

"Whaaaaaaat?" Chopper yelled out in fear. "You mean that rock that Luffy fished out earlier was…?"

"That idiot," Zoro groaned, smacking himself in the face. "Leave it to him to fish out something dangerous like that."

"What was it talking about treasure then?" Nami demanded at once. "It said so on the door here didn't it? That there was treasure?"

"Yeah, but it all said something really creepy with it!" Usopp yelled out. "Something about…?"

"_Facing the darkest shadows of your soul_," Robin recited softly.

"Well, what's that supposed to mean?" Sanji asked, lighting another cigarette. "I don't like the sound of that."

"Whatever it does mean, it doesn't sound good," Franky said with a frown. "So not cool."

"So how about we just find Luffy and get off this place then?" Usopp suggested. "I mean, it only takes half a day for the Log Pose to reset right? As soon as we find the captain, we clear out."

"Yeah, I'm all for it," Nami agreed, now looking around anxiously.

"Hey wait," Zoro demanded. "What was so dangerous about that stone that they had to break it apart and then separate it?"

"I'm not entirely sure," Robin confessed as she flipped through the book. "According to this, it states that it depends on the one who unlocked the door."

"Unlocks the door?" Nami repeated.

"There's something to do with this temple and the stone," she said shaking her head, not having the slightest idea to what this all meant. "There's some kind of gate that's here…"

She gasped as she stared at the page in amazement.

"What?" Usopp cried out loudly, sounding close to freaking out. "What is it?"

"If I'm right," Robin said anxiously, looking at them all, "Then this island could just be the legendary land called Agartha…"

"Agartha?" Nami repeated, "What the heck is that?"

"I think I've heard of it," Sanji said coming forward. "I think I might've read about it as a kid. Isn't Agartha the name that's used to describe the land of the dead?"

"_LAND OF THE DEAD_?" Brook, Usopp, and Chopper call cried out at once in full panic mode.

"No," Robin said at once, still in her usual calm tone. "Agartha isn't that…"

"It isn't?" Chopper asked, sighing in relief. "What a relief…"

"Rather, Agartha is the land that holds the _gateway_ to the land of the dead," she finished and they screamed out loud again.

"The gateway?" Zoro repeated, his eyebrows raised.

"What's that mean?" Franky asked, looking lost.

Robin flipped open the book and read out, "_'Long ago when humankind was young, there was one place where it was possible to reunite with lost loved ones. Agartha… the island where broken hearts can mend…' _that's what it says. Apparently this temple was built because of that… this temple is some kind of gateway that connects to the other side."

"The other side?" Nami asked in wonder and horror. "Does that mean… does that mean that we can see people who died again?"

"I honestly don't know," Robin said, now sounding disappointed—as if upset that she didn't know the answers. "There's not much else on it; just something about a Gate of Life and Death. _'Those who have the key are taken to this gate and are confronted with the memories of life while staring down death.'_ But it doesn't say much else."

"Ok," Usopp said gulping. "I don't know anything about any of this, but why don't we just find Luffy and leave this creepy _'land of the dead' _stuff behind?"

"I agree with Usopp-san!" Brook called, holding up his hand as if voting. "I certainly don't want to come face-to-face with a ghost!"

"Aren't you technically undead?" Zoro asked annoyed.

"But what about Luffy?" Chopper asked anxiously.

"I think I know," Zoro told him. As they all looked he quickly explained about what he saw. "I don't know if it was a dream or not… but I saw some kind of roots dragging him underground… but that hole isn't here anymore!"

Sanji walked over and began to examine the altar, looking at it from every angle. "I don't know what to tell ya," he called. "But I really don't see anything here…" He stood up and smiled. "Which means…"

"Don't you dare," Robin warned him, her eyes narrowed dangerously. "I'm worry about Luffy too… but don't you dare destroy anything."

"Yes, Robin dear!" Sanji cried out, hearts in his eyes. "You all hear that?" he demanded them all, "Anyone puts one stone out of place here, they'll have to deal with me!"

"But Sanji we have to find Luffy!" Usopp said pleadingly.

"It's that idiot's fault for getting himself into this," Sanji said, now standing in front of the altar like a guard. "If Robin-chan says not to touch anything, then we won't!"

"I never said that," Robin said, walking up and kneeling down to run her hand along the altar. "I merely don't want you to destroy this place." She then pulled out a notebook and began to look through it as she studied the ancient writing that was mostly worn away.

"Darkest shadows of your soul…?" she repeated to herself, reciting what had been written on the door, "but what does that all mean? Apparently there's some kind of price to pay at the Gates of Life and Death."

"A price?" Brook asked softly.

"Why do I not like the sound of that?" Zoro said, now looking angry.

"YOW! It doesn't surprise me," Franky sighed in annoyance. "Nothing comes without a price in this world…"

"You mean you have to give something in order to meet with lost loved ones?" Nami asked uncertainly, a deep desire to see her adopted mother once again, if only for a moment.

"Yeah, is it really possible?" Chopper asked, his eyes watering up at the thought of being able to see Dr. Hiluluk again.

"This is all guess work mostly," Robin confessed, pushing up her sunglasses as she stared at the words on the stone.

"Well, what is it that you have to give up, Robin-san?" Brook asked curiously.

"More like to share," Robin said, frowning as she wrote something down in the notebook.

"Share?" Usopp repeated, not having the slightest clue to what she was saying.

"Yes," Robin answered, "Apparently, you have to share your memories of being alive. That's all it says."

"What? You mean tell these ghosts your life story or something?" Usopp asked confused.

"That's all it says," Robin answered, slowly getting up, still looking through her notes. "I guess that there's someone that Luffy wants to meet again and is probably sharing his memories as we speak so that he can speak to that person again. If Luffy had the key, then he would most likely be taken to the Gate. What happens after that, I can't say."

"Just great," Nami called out sarcastically. "So now Luffy's who-knows-where, and we have no idea how to find him!"

Usopp moved back, pulling out his slingshot as he looked around, now wishing he still had his old exorcism gear on to ward off the evil spirits. Chopper moved a little closer to Zoro as they argued to what it was they were supposed to do.

"You idiot, why didn't you do something?" Sanji yelled at Zoro. "You're a swordsman right? Why didn't you cut up those roots or something?"

"Hey, I told you didn't I?" Zoro yelled in annoyance, feeling a strong urge to kill the cook. "I don't know if it was a dream or not! All I know for sure is that couldn't move for some reason! It felt like I had a whale or something on me. I couldn't move a muscle!"

"Apparently it was the weight of the burdens you carry through life that weighed you down," Robin answered as if it was obvious.

"The what?" Zoro repeated as Robin continued to flip through the book. "According to this, those selected to go to the gate are suddenly weighed down by all the burdens they carry in life and are unable to move as they are taken to the gate's entrance. Only once they arrive is the weight taken off them."

"But I wasn't taken to some gate now was I?" Zoro demanded. "I just watched! I don't know what those roots were or where that hole came from! Just what is all this?"

"I've already told you everything in here," Robin said sadly, shutting the book again. "Without some kind of key, there's not much we can do."

"So what? We're stuck here waiting until Luffy's done in there?" Sanji asked as Usopp kept walking around in a circle, a pop green in his slingshot, just waiting for an attack.

"If we could figure out how to open the doorway here, we may be able to follow him," Robin said softly as Usopp cried out in panic.

"NO!" he yelled out at the top of his lungs, "THIS ISLAND IS CURSED! DO WE REALLY WANT TO RISK BEING CURSED OURSELVES?" he stopped to take a deep breath and finished, "Now, why don't we just wait back at the ship? I mean, Luffy's strong! He can take care of himself right? How much trouble could he get into at the Gateway to Hell?"

They all looked at each other.

"We've got to find him now," Zoro said, looking around, trying to feel something, anything that lurked on the island.

"Search everywhere for some way in!" Nami called. "Don't leave any stone unturned!"

"You can count on me!" Sanji cried, love-struck.

"We really should find him," Robin said softly, "It would be bad if Luffy was cursed by spirits of the dead."

"Robin please don't say creepy things like that," Usopp whispered as Franky moved up his sunglasses so that his eyes could do a quick scan of the surrounding area.

"You don't really think that there could be real ghosts right?" Chopper asked, looking a little blue in the face at the thought.

"Hard to say," Franky said, "So far, I'm not picking up anything."

"The land of the dead…" Brook sighed as he put his hand on the altar and leaned heavily against it. "It feels so long ago that I was there myself. It is a frightening place… I think…?"

"You think?" Usopp repeated with a squeak.

"I'm afraid I don't really remember too much about it," Brook confessed. "I vaguely recall walking down a warm tunnel with a glorious, shining light but that's about it…"

"Creepy," Chopper asked as the others fanned out to look.

Brook sighed and had pushed himself up, but as he did, he accidently ended up pushing the altar slightly and he almost fell over from shock.

Usopp, who had his back to Brook, jumped at the sudden noise and cried out in alarm, "GHOSTS FROM BEYOND THE GRAVE! THEY'RE HERE!"

As he and Chopper screamed out, the others looked back in time to see that the stone had been covering something. "Oh!" Brook called. "There really _is_ a hole here!"

At once, Sanji and Zoro came over to continue pushing it until the entire hole was uncovered and they were all staring down it. It was impossible to say just how deep it was because there was no sign of the bottom.

Usopp gulped as he looked down and whispered, "It's even darker than the Deep Sea!"

"Appropriate place for the pathway to hell," Zoro said calmly.

"How can you say something like that so calmly?" Usopp yelled at him, pointing down the hole. "It's darker than dark! There's no telling how deep this thing goes! And you're telling me that Luffy's down there?!"

"Yeah," Zoro said, standing up straight. "So who wants to go down and check things out?"

"YOU HAVE TO BE CRAZY!" Usopp cried out. "WHO IN THEIR RIGHT MINDS WOULD WANT TO GO TO HELL?"

"So you just want to leave Luffy down there?" Franky asked, which shut Usopp up at once.

"What makes you so sure that he's down there?" Nami questioned, looking down the hole anxiously like she expected something to come crawling out.

They all looked at each other and nodded together. Yep, there was no doubt in their minds that Luffy was definitely in there.

"I'll go," Zoro volunteered.

"Me too," Sanji sighed, breathing out the smoke from his cigarette.

"You can count me in!" Franky called out, striking his pose.

Robin giggled. "Sounds like fun."

"_You're_ going too, Robin?!" Nami cried out in horror.

"It's not every day you get to visit hell," Robin answered with a bright smile.

"I will go too," Brook said at once, his guitar in hand as he strummed along. "I will be my newest song! '_Pathway to HELL!'_"

"So you guys plan on leaving us here?" Chopper asked with a gulp.

"Not unless you want to come with us," Zoro said, walking up to stand on the edge of the hole and looked down. "Do what you want. Either come with us, or go back to the ship." He took a deep breath, and before anyone could say another word, he jumped down, the darkness of the hole swallowing him up like some kind of monster.

"Zoro!" Usopp called after him, but they didn't get a word. It was truly as if Zoro had been swallowed up by another world.

"Well," Robin said smiling as she came up, sticking her book and notebook back into her bag. "What are we waiting around for?" And quick as a flash, she jumped in after Zoro, a slight giggle escaping her mouth as she did.

"Wait for me, Robin-chan!" Sanji cried, and jumped right after her, swooning as he did.

"ROBIN! SANJI!" Chopper cried out fearfully.

"Yeah!" Franky called happily as he jumped, "Don't forget the SUUUUPPPPPEEEERRR ARMOR ME!"

"Yohohoho!" Brook laughed as Franky disappeared and the other three were now looking scared. "Never a dull moment in this crew!"

"Brook, wait!" Usopp gasped out. "Are you sure you want to go?"

"Yohohoho! I've already been to the land of the dead Usopp-san," Brook laughed. "I don't see why I should be afraid!" and with those words he jumped, laughing all the way down, his voice disappearing down the hole until fading away like some kind of echo. That left the three of them still standing up watching.

Nami gulped as she said, "I think they've got it. I mean, it shouldn't take long for them to find Luffy and come back right?"

"Yeah!" Usopp said, optimistically. "We could wait for them back at the Sunny for them! I mean, it's not like we need their protection anymore does it?"

"Yeah!" Chopper cried out proudly, his two hooves up in the air. "I'm a full-grown man now! You don't need to worry!"

"Right," Nami said, looking up at the darkening sky. "I'm sure that it shouldn't take them too long…"

As they all got up, Usopp took a step back and ended up stepping on a twig, breaking it in half. The noise alone was enough to startle Usopp as he jumped up, tripped and ended up falling head-over-heels into the hole.

"OH CRAPPPPPPP!" was his cry as he was fell in.

"USOPP!" Chopper cried out, and without thinking, jumped in after him.

"Chopper!" Nami cried as she watched their doctor tumble through the dark. Now it was just Nami all alone. She stared around her in worry before she sighed. "Luffy, I'm going to kill you for this," she promised as she closed her eyes and jumped in after them.

**(So how is it yet? Please tell me what you all think and if it sounds promising to you all. Any suggesting to the memories that should be shown and how? I'd love to hear any ideas you all have.)**


	3. Tough Love and Dream Searching

**Chapter 3: Tough Love and Dream Searching**

Down… down… down… they all fell. The darkness pressing in on all sides as they almost drifted, the wind causally slowing as each one of them dropped. But there wasn't anything that could be seen… nothing but darkness everywhere…

Just as Zoro was starting to get bored, he felt his feet suddenly touchdown—almost gently. He cautiously stepped around to see that he was standing on some sort of floor, though he couldn't tell what it was.

"What is it?" called a voice above him and he glanced up in time to see Robin there, falling like a leave as she landed lightly on her feet as he had. "Now this is interesting," she smiled, looking around curiously.

"I sorta expected hell to be a little hotter than this," Zoro said as Sanji came falling next a few feet away.

Franky and Brook soon dropped in… followed by a screaming Usopp, Chopper, and Nami as well. Zoro ignored them all as he kept his hand on his swords, ready to draw at a moment's notice, keeping a firm look around, trying to sense something. But there didn't seem to be anything as he stepped cautiously away from the crew.

"Yohohoho, so you all decided to come with us after all!" Brook called happily to the other three, who were sticking close to them all.

"Not by choice!" Usopp snapped back, his slingshot in hand as he looked around. "Where are we? Why's it so dark?"

"There doesn't seem to be anything else down here," Sanji said, reaching out with Haki to feel anyone else, only to come up empty. "No, I don't sense anything but the eight of us…"

"Can't find Luffy at all," Zoro added as he came back to the group. "But there's something else down here… I can't explain it, but it's not normal."

"I agree," Sanji said, an odd shiver going up his spine. "It's like this darkness is alive or something and it's watching us…"

"A-Alive?" Chopper croaked out, sticking close to Robin as he looked around fearfully.

Nami reached out to look at her hands. "Why is it that we can see ourselves and each other, but can't see anything else?"

"No clue," Robin answered, looking at her hands as well. "But it's like we're glowing enough that we can see ourselves. If only we had more light…"

"Did you forget about me?" Franky asked, stepping forward confidently. "Luckily, I have something just in case of emergencies like this!" he proclaimed proudly before pulling his shirt back and crying out, "FRANKY NIBBLE LIGHTS!"

"That is still too weird," Usopp said with a sweatdrop. But as Franky shined the light, it was as if it was swallowed up as well… it stretched on in the distance, but there honestly wasn't anything there.

"I don't like this place," Chopper said fearfully. "I wanna just find Luffy and leave!"

"We all do," Nami said nervously as she looked back up to see if she could see the hole that they came down from. But to her horror, there wasn't any light above them.

"We must be pretty deep if we can't even see the hole," Robin answered calmly.

"Yeah, how are we supposed to get back out?" Usopp asked almost squeakily, as he looked up too. "I don't see where we came out of…"

No one answered him as they continued to try to find something in this void. It was disturbing to say the least… because in the suffocating, squeezing darkness, there is _nothing_… no warmth, no air… just emptiness.

Brook shivered a little, "This place makes me feel goosebumps on my skin… ah! Not that I have skin!" But he didn't laugh as much as he would normally—he didn't like this place. It reminded him painfully of those lonely years he spent trapped in that dark fog.

"Where are we?" Nami asked, sticking close to Sanji, whose eyes were in the shape of hearts again at having Nami so close.

"You don't think we're all dead do you?!" Usopp cried out dramatically.

"BUT I DON'T WANNA BE DEAD!" Chopper screamed out.

"NEITHER DO I!" Brook called fearfully. "AH! Though I am technically dea…"

"Don't worry," Robin said calmly again. "I'm pretty sure that we haven't died… but where we are now, I can't say."

"Where's this gate thing you were talking about?" Franky asked, still trying to shine his nipple lights as far out as he could, desperate to see something.

"I don't know any more than you do about this," Robin answered him simply.

"So what now? We just sit here in the dark?" Zoro demanded. But almost as soon as he opened his mouth to say the words, the darkness faded and suddenly they were standing in what appeared to be a thick jungle. Trees appeared out of nowhere and sounds of birds began to cry from above as a bright sun shone down on all of them.

"Wow!" Chopper shouted in astonishment, stars in his eyes. "That's incredible!"

"Amazing!" Brook yelled he stared around in wonder.

"It's SUUUUUPER cool effect!" Franky called, striking his pose.

"I've never seen anything like this," Nami whispered, gapping at the sudden bright sunlight, forced to shield her eyes again.

"Ok, while I'm glad to get out of that shithole we were just in," Sanji said at once, "But would someone mind telling me where we are?"

"Please don't tell me we've passed onto heaven," Usopp whispered, the shock of suddenly being back in the light wearing off.

"If we did, that sure was quick," Zoro said so that Chopper and Usopp cried. "But I doubt that we died that easily."

"We can't be in heaven," Sanji said darkly. "Moss Head's still with us."

"What was that you crap cook?" Zoro growled at him threateningly.

"Would you both please stop fighting for once?!" Usopp begged. "Let's get out of this freaky place!"

"Alright, then tell us how you suggest we do that?" Zoro snapped at him.

"I don't know!" Usopp yelled back. "That's why I'm asking you all!"

"At least it's nice and quiet," Chopper spoke up.

"Yohoho, it's wonderful here," Brook agreed. "Such a nice place! What do you think, Nami-san?"

He looked back in time to see that she had wandered a few feet away and was now kneeling down in front of some large wildflowers. "I've never seen flowers like this," Nami whispered, holding out her hand and attempted to pick one… only to have her fingers go right through them as if she was made of nothing but air…

They all froze as they stared at the scene. For a moment, they all seemed to be too stunned to speak and then…

"EHHHHHHHHH!" Brook cried out in panic. "WE'RE GHOSTS! WE'VE MUST'VE DIED AND BECOME GHOSTS!"

Brook, Chopper, and Usopp began to scream and panic, not knowing what to do and Chopper was now crying until Nami screamed out, "SHUT UP ALL OF YOU! We can't all be dead can we?"

"I don't know," Sanji said, unusually causal as he looked to Brook and asked, "Is this what the afterlife looks like?"

"I don't really remember, Sanji-san," Brook admitted, tilting his head in confusion. "But I don't remember any forest…"

"No," Robin said, looking around. "I have a theory where we might be… but if I'm right, then it doesn't actually help us…"

"Well, where do you _think_ we are?" Franky asked, but before he could finish asking, they heard something coming up from behind them.

"What's that?" Chopper cried, hiding behind Zoro again, "Some kind of monster?"

"I knew it!" Usopp gasped out in his usual doom-and-gloom speech. "It's some kind of monster from hell coming here to make sure that we're all dead!"

"Sounds more like a person to me," Nami whispered, pulling out her weapon and getting ready to attack.

Through the trees, the figure of a tall, tan, broad-chested, muscular man came slowly towards them. He had black hair and goatee, with whitening sideburns and carrying a familiar scar on his left eye…

Nami gasped, her eyes widening in recognition. "G-Garp?"

It was indeed the marine hero… though they had only seem him once, he certainly left an impression. He wasn't in his standard marine clothes this time though, he was in a simple t-shirt and shorts, carrying a bottle of liquor in his hands as he hummed quite contently to himself as he approached them.

"T-that is him!" Usopp whispered in astonishment. "But what's he doing here?"

"Well, I guess this really is hell," Zoro said darkly, flicking his thumb a little on his sword hilt so that the blade could be seen, prepared for the worse. "If the Marines are here hunting us and all…?"

"You know him?" Brook asked them all, realizing how they were all staring at Garp with shock and horror. "I admit his name does sound familiar but…"

"Vice Admiral Garp," Robin said lightly. "A Marine hero… as well as Luffy's grandfather."

"Grandfather?" Brook repeated in amazement. "Luffy-san's grandfather is a marine hero?"

"I know, that's what we all said when we found out," Sanji said lightly, letting his cigarette fall from his mouth as he moved forward—ready to attack. "You expect Luffy's bloodline to be filled with nothing but criminals."

"Well, his father sorta makes up for that," Franky said, holding up his arm, ready to fire.

"Dragon…" Robin muttered softly.

"Yeah, him," Franky muttered. "I mean, he is classified as the _'Most Wanted Man in the World'_ for a reason now isn't he?"

"Isn't there anyone normal in Luffy's family?" Usopp whispered as Garp stepped closer and closer. "But that's not the point! We have to deal with this maniac?"

"Don't know," Zoro said, pulling out two swords now, since Garp showed no signs of stopping. "But if he wants to fight, we'll be more than happy to oblige."

"OI! GARP!" Sanji yelled. "Whadda want with us now?!"

He had expected Garp to stop walking and address him. Perhaps to laugh or taunt them… but surprisingly, he did nothing of the sort as he came closer.

"What's with him?" Usopp asked nervously. "Why doesn't he answer us?"

"Yeah, you think he'd be asking us where his grandson is or something," Brook stated, his hand still on his own weapon, ready to draw it.

Zoro frowned. Something wasn't right here… he couldn't sense anything coming from this man… how was that possible?

Just when Garp was a few feet away, they all held up their weapons, but Robin held up her hand. "Wait!" she said, stepping forward to face him alone.

"Wait for what?" Franky demanded. "He's gonna…?"

"It's alright," Robin answered, standing still as Garp continued on his way, not even glancing at her. "Watch…"

And just like that, Garp walked right up to her, and then right _through_ her like how Nami did with those flowers.

Everyone's jaw dropped as they stared at her as she only smiled. "I thought so…" she answered softly.

"What the hell was that?" Usopp cried out, moving away from Garp as he walked passed them, who didn't react at all—not even noticing the fact that he just walked through someone.

"I thought something was strange here," Robin said lightly, turning back towards them, and pulling the book out of her bag again. "I remembered what it said in this book… that you must share your memories before you are able to speak with a lost loved one. I had a feeling that this was the case."

"Wait… a memory?" Chopper asked, still looking freaked out, "You mean that Luffy's grandpa wasn't real?"

"Garp looks a lot younger than when we met him at Water 7 two years ago doesn't he?" Robin said, all of them turning to watch Garp continue on his way through the jungle, apparently looking for something. "I took a chance, and I see now that I was correct. These must be memories…"

"I still don't get it," Franky said predictably.

"Think of it as like a 'dream'," Robin answered as she looked around her in new interest.

"Oh, so we're all asleep right now?" Chopper asked, sighing in relief. "That's good to know."

"A dream?" Zoro repeated sarcastically. "Then tell me how we're all dreaming the same thing."

"Everything we see here is all history," Robin answered, now following after Garp. "This must be part of Luffy's past that we're seeing."

"Ok," Zoro said darkly. "But _how_ is this possible?"

They all followed after Robin as she continued to flip through the book. "It says that you need to share your memories of being alive when you arrive at the Gate of Life and Death. So I guess this is what it's happening. I think it's safe to say we're seeing into Luffy's memories if I'm correct."

"Wah!" Chopper called out. "So we're inside Luffy's head?"

"It was dark and empty enough to be," Sanji stated, thinking of the darkness they'd seen before.

"Yohohoho," Brook laughed. "Sanji-san is harsh!"

"But what about Luffy?" Usopp questioned, gripping his hair anxiously. "I mean, he's ok right?"

"I don't know," Robin answered with a sigh. "All I know is that this must be part of Luffy's mind. His memories… so of course it makes sense that no one can see or hear us or why we can't touch anything! We're merely witnessing a part of our captain's past."

"Ok," Sanji said, looking around at the trees. "So that means that nothing can see or hear us here… heck they can't even touch us! That I do get… but _how_ do we get out of here? And where's Luffy?"

Suddenly, Garp stopped moving, and they all froze—forgetting that if this was a memory—he shouldn't be able to hear them. "There you are!" Garp called loudly to something that had moved among some thick bushes. "Come out here!"

Suddenly a small figure, dirty and tired came stumbling through the thick foliage and they all gasped at what they saw. It was Luffy… but a child Luffy who looked no older than four or five years old. He was tiny, dressed in a torn shirt with the picture of a seagull on it, and dirty white shorts. He wasn't wearing his signature straw hat and he didn't have the scar under his eye as he came towards Garp, looking starved. As if he had been running around in the jungle all night.

"I guess that settles it," Zoro said, staring at Luffy's small figure as he pulled himself free of the plants and came up to his grandfather.

"Well, wasn't he cute?" Robin smiled as she looked at the little boy.

"Yohoho," Brook said leaning over so that he could get a better look at Luffy. "Luffy-san," he said. "You got so small!"

"Yeah, but what happened to him?" Sanji asked, almost gaping at what he was seeing. "He looks like he hasn't slept or eaten for days."

"G-Grandpa," Luffy stuttered tiredly, coming to a stop in front of the intimidating figure of Garp.

"Now, how was your weekend in the jungle?" Garp asked happily, patting Luffy fondly on the head.

"I didn't sleep at all," Luffy complained as his stomach roared with hunger. "And some giant bears tried to eat me," he added as he put his hands on his stomach.

Garp laughed as he clapped him on the shoulder. "But you survived! That's what matters."

"He doesn't seem concerned that his grandson was almost eaten does he?" Franky asked deadpanned.

Chopper came up close to Luffy, who didn't even look at him, and looked at the cuts. "These are some pretty bad cuts!" he cried out worriedly. "He needs them checked out."

"What does Garp mean by his weekend in the jungle?" Usopp repeated frowning. "He's making it sound like he just left Luffy out here in the jungle and expected him to survive on his own."

"Didn't Garp mention that he used to leave Luffy in the jungle at night when we met him back at Water 7?" Sanji asked, trying hard to think back.

"He said what?" Brook asked in surprise.

Nami clapped a hand to her forehead. "So we're back that far in Luffy's memories?"

Luffy was now sucking his thumb as his grandfather took him to a small clearing through the thick trees, where they all got a surprise to see several large monkeys there. Garp then practically threw Luffy at them, yelling at him to start fighting.

"What?" Chopper demanded furiously. "He's making him fight without checking out those cuts? They could get infected if not treated! Especially with all this humid air and bacteria in the jungle!"

But Luffy didn't complain as he started to fight… he was slow and clumsy compared to the monkeys, but he did alright dodging them at first. But soon, he was hit from all sides until he was forced to do a face-plant and skidded to a stop at his grandfather's feet.

"Can someone explain to me what's going on?" Franky whispered as Luffy jumped back up to his feet and complained, rubbing the back of his head, "Grandpa! Why do I have to fight these guys?"

"That's what I want to know," Usopp whispered. "I mean, he's doing pretty good so far, but he's just a little kid!"

The monkey behind him was making noises and they looked to see him in a boxing stance, throwing out punches as if to challenge him again.

"Training," was Garp's answer.

"I'm almost afraid to ask for what," Franky said.

"Training?" Luffy asked confused. "But I'm hungry! And I'm tired of being hit!"

"Even back then, his stomach comes first," Sanji sighed, running his fingers through his hair. "I guess some things never change."

"Well, to be fair, apparently he's been in this place for a couple days with no food or sleep," Robin pointed out just as two more monkeys joined the first, wanting for a fight.

Garp said, "Don't be soft! One day you're gonna become the world's strongest marine!"

"Marine? Yeah, right," Nami said as the rest of the Straw Hats nodded behind her. "I can't picture Luffy in some stuck-up place like Marine Headquarters following rules, do any of you?"

"No," they all said at once and without any hesitation.

Apparently Luffy thought so too. "Marine?" he repeated before frowning and said, "I'm not gonna be a marine… I'm gonna be a pirate!"

"He's got guts even back then," Zoro smirked, looking at Garp's angry expression.

"What?" he demanded, now ignoring all the other monkeys and shouted out, "Don't be stupid!"

He then raised his fist and punched Luffy so hard that he was knocked back and a giant bump appeared on his head. "OUCH!" Luffy shouted out, his eyes watering in pain. "Grandpa's fist hurts the most!"

"The old man sure is quick to resort to violence isn't he?" Usopp said nervously. "Makes me wonder how Luffy lived passed his childhood with a gramps like that."

"I don't believe it!" Nami hissed in outrage. "He leaves his grandson all alone in the jungle for a few days, before tells him to start fighting, and then hits him?"

"I guess we now know where Luffy gets some of his endless will to live from," Sanji said, shaking his head, suddenly reminded of the 'training' he had with Zeff when he was a kid. "And I thought the old geezer was bad when he was teaching me to cook."

Suddenly, it went dark again.

"Oh, no!" Usopp yelled in worry. "What's happening now?!" But before anyone could come up with an answer, everything came back into focus and they were standing over the edge of a deep ravine in the ground.

"Wow!" Chopper cried, looking down the hole. "That's really deep!"

"Why do I not like where this is going?" Zoro asked, his eye looking around and soon spotted them coming. Garp was there arguing with Luffy, who was dragging his feet, trying to prevent his grandfather from taking him somewhere. He latched on to a giant rock they were passing and held on for dear life as Garp pulled on his arm.

"Looks like we're about to see another training session," Sanji said, not sure if this was going to be pleasant what they were about to see.

"Why doesn't Luffy-san's arm stretch here?" Brook asked, seeing that Luffy's arm remained as it was as Garp pulled him free.

"I think it's safe to say that this must be before he ate the Devil Fruit," Robin said watching them as they approached the ravine.

"Wow, it's hard to picture a Luffy who isn't made of rubber," Usopp said, thinking about it.

"Well, he wasn't always made of rubber," Robin smiled.

"But why are they here?" Brook asked hesitantly, as they finally arrived at the fissure.

"Granddad!" Luffy called out, still fighting tooth and nail to pull himself free of Garp's hold, "I don't wanna do training today!"

"And that is what makes you weak!" Garp snapped as he held his grandson up by his shirt over the fissure and looked down.

"What is this place?" Luffy asked nervously, his feet dangling over the hole.

"This is known as the Bottomless Ravine," Garp said conversationally. "Though it isn't technically bottomless… apparently, if you fall in, it would take about three days for you to hit bottom so you have plenty of time to try and get out."

"WAIT WHAT?!" Luffy yelled in panic as Garp let go and Luffy fell with a scream.

"HE DIDN'T!" Usopp yelled, griping his hat in horror, watching Luffy's tiny form disappear into the dark. "WAS HE TRYING TO KILL HIM?"

"I CAN'T BELIEVE THAT HE DROPPED HIS OWN GRANDSON DOWN LIKE THAT!" Nami yelled as the rest of the crew stared at Garp.

"This explains a lot now," Zoro said, in an impressed voice. "Dealing with this every time you see your grandfather would make you hate those family reunions wouldn't it?"

"How can you say that?!" Brook yelled in dismay. "He could've died from that! Three days to hit the bottom? That would kill anyone! And Luffy-san's not made of rubber yet!"

"How can anyone do that to their own grandson?" Nami repeated to herself as Chopper gulped.

"Luffy's grandpa is scary!" he whispered.

"I hear ya, Chopper," Sanji agreed as the image slowly faded away again until they were standing outside a tavern with the name, "PARTY BAR" hanging over the entrance.

"The Party Bar?" Robin repeated, looking up and down the road, before looking up, able to see the ocean from the little pub on the hill. Sanji whistled loudly at the view. There was a beautiful sunset along the horizon. The sky was filled with color; orange faded to purple as the sun receded across the glassy, blue-green. They could all hear the sounds of waves washing slowly against the shore and the gentle tumble of the scattered windmills echoing throughout the village.

"It's so pretty here!" Chopper said, his eyes bright at the sparkling sea.

"It kinda reminds me of my hometown," Usopp said smiling, and suddenly feeling a little homesick as he thought of Syrup Village. "But—ah—does anyone have an idea where we are?"

They looked around at the houses along the way, the few people that were now heading home, cows behind the fences enjoying the grass before heading off, the spinning windmills…

"Windmills?" Nami said softly, watching them. "Didn't Luffy say his hometown was full of windmills? You think this is it?"

"You mean this is Luffy's home?" Chopper asked.

"Not a bad place," Zoro said, looking around. "Looks kinda boring but…"

Suddenly a young woman came out of the bar they were standing next to with a broom in her hands as she began to sweep the front way. She was a very pretty girl with dark green hair that fell to her shoulders and tucked underneath a bandana; she was humming softly to herself as she worked, clearly not able to see them anymore than Luffy or Garp could.

As soon as he saw her, Sanji's eyes turned into hearts as he twirled over to her, his hands over his heart as if he was in great pain. "My, what a beauty," he whispered, his heart feeling like it would burst from his chest from happiness. "It would be my greatest pleasure to take this off your…"

But as he reached out to touch her hand, his own went right through it and he gasped before he fell to his knees in depression, tears in his eyes. "It's not fair…" he whispered, softly hitting the ground. "Such a beautiful lady and she… she can't even…"

"I guess you forgot that she can't hear or see any of us?" Usopp asked him, his face devoid of all pity as he looked at him.

"Stupid cook," Zoro grumbled.

"What did you just say, Moss Head?!" Sanji cried, jumping to his feet, ready for a fight.

"You heard me," Zoro shot back, his hands going for his swords again.

"Enough!" Nami screamed. "What do we have to do? Put you both in time out! While this is interesting, don't you think it's about time that we try to find a way out of this place?"

They stopped arguing and looked up to her, forgetting where they were for a moment. "I don't know where we are, or how this is possible," Nami went on, "But we shouldn't be waiting our time here like this! We've got to try and find a way out of here, find Luffy, and get back to the ship. All of this is really starting to creep me out!"

"Yes, Nami-swwwwaaaannnnn…" Sanji cried out, smiling as he came before her. "Your wish is my command!"

"But ah…" Brook asked slowly, "How do we get out of here…? My eyes don't see a way out do yours? Ah! Not that I have eyes to begin with! Yohohoho!"

"Stop messing around!" Nami snapped. "Joking isn't going to get us out of this place any quicker now is it?" But before she could really start telling them off, a familiar voice shouted out, "MAKINO!"

They looked up in time to see Luffy running out of nowhere, dirty and covered with bruises as he went straight for the woman at the bar. She braced herself just in time to avoid being knocked over as he lunge for her leg, terror on his face as he hung onto her skirt.

"Luffy, what-?" she asked as she heard a familiar booming laugh coming up the road.

"Sounds like Garp's coming," Franky stated. "Poor kid… wonder how he got out of that ravine though…?"

"Hide meeeeeeeeee!" Luffy begged the woman, looking back to the road. "Gramps! He's coming!"

She blinked before she took his hand and led him inside the tavern. They followed them inside the warm-looking building, pass all the chairs and tables until they got to the bar. They watched as the woman took him and told him to duck down and be quite until she got rid of Garp. Nami watched as Luffy sat on the floor, holding a chubby finger to his lips as if to shush her. She had to fight a smile… why couldn't Luffy still be this cute?

Suddenly, the two doors burst open and Garp came in.

"Is he in here?!" Garp asked as he came up to the woman named Makino, who stood up straight and tall.

"Training hard, Garp-san?" she asked politely, stealthily covering up the squeak of fear that came from near her feet.

"That brat… I never had this problem with Ace," Garp sighed as he sat down at one of the tables and pulled out a bag of rice crackers and taking a big bite.

"What is it now?" she asked, still smiling and Sanji swooned at the sweet smile she had.

"Makino," Garp grunted, not answering the question. "Did Luffy come here? I go to the trouble of gathering all those balloons, and he insists on running and hiding from training."

"Balloons?" Chopper asked in confusion. "Why would you need balloons for training?"

"I don't know, but I don't think we'll like the answer," Usopp said, feeling sweat fall from his face, feeling bad for Luffy having to put up with this.

"Balloons for what?" Makino asked, obviously wondering the same thing.

"Flight training," he answered simply. "I'm trying to figure out what else I can do since he's such a horrible swimmer!"

"I CAN TOO SWIM!" Luffy yelled, before clamping his hands over his mouth.

"What a big mouth," Sanji sighed, smacking himself in the face. "You'd think that he'd keep quiet!"

"AHAH!" Garp called out, getting up to lean over the bar to grab him, but Luffy was faster as he clambered out of the way by a hair and ran over to Makino to hide behind her.

"NOOOOOOO!" he cried, hiding from Garp. "HE'S GONNA KILL ME! I 'DUN WANNA DIEEEEEEEE!"

"LUFFY GET BACK HERE!" Garp yelled, cracking his knuckles together, a sadistic grin on his face.

"Poor kid," Zoro said, unusually sympathetic as Garp came closer to them.

Makino then held up her hands and cried out, "Garp-san, didn't you say that you had to go somewhere today? Apparently, Marine Headquarters need you back for a very important job?"

"I do, but Luffy spent all day running from his training," Garp barked. "It's lucky we got any training down at all this week."

"What did you make him do this time?" Makino asked as Luffy didn't dare come out from behind her.

"He left me down a giant hole for two days," Luffy whispered to her.

"Two days?" Chopper screamed out.

"Poor guy," Franky sighed as he looked at Luffy's bleeding hands and scratches on his face.

"How could anyone do that?" Nami demanded hotly. "I understand training, but there's a limit! If I didn't know better, I'd swear that he's trying to kill him!"

"So how have things been here?" Garp asked in a casual manner, now addressing Makino.

"Quiet and peaceful as always," she smiled, "Through I can't help but think that's because your ship is docked at the harbor."

"I'll be returning to HQ tonight," he said as Makino looked up. "So I'll be leaving this trouble-maker with you again."

"So… he's just leaving his grandson with some random person?" Nami asked, looking at Makino. Who was this lady? She looked a little too young to be Luffy's mother.

Makino smiled at him and nodded. "That's great. You know how much I love having Luffy visit." She then smiled at the little boy and ran her fingers through his hair fondly before she asked, "Do you know when you'll be back?"

"I guess she isn't his mother," Robin said lightly.

"How could Luffy come from such a kind and beautiful woman anyway?" Sanji asked at once.

"Yohoho, Makino-san is so nice!" Brook laughed happily.

"Don't know yet," Garp answered, finishing up his bag of rice crackers. "But don't worry. This village is so small no real pirate will stop by here again. The last ones who were dumb enough to come by were complete weaklings. Bwahahahaha!"

"Well, please hurry back anyway," Makino said happily, though her expression clearly stated otherwise."Oh, and please let us know beforehand so that we can gather enough crackers to cover your next stay," she added as Garp tilted his head back to finish the bag.

"I gotta say, anyone who can stand up to Garp like that has nerves of steel," Zoro said, his eyebrows raised impressed. "And she seems willing to put up with Luffy, so that only adds to it."

Robin smiled and laughed slightly, "Well, he was cute…"

Garp just laughed even harder as he waved goodbye. The sun had all but fallen on the horizon and the bright orange of the sunset had given way to the deep purples and blues of night.

"So, he's just leaving him?" Nami asked sardonically. "With no money or clothes or anything?"

"I'd just be happy with him gone," Usopp whispered as Makino took Luffy upstairs where so that she could clean him up.

"He's getting pretty harsh with his training isn't he?" Makino asked in a kind voice, looking sadly at his bleeding hands. "But it looks like you'll be staying with me again tonight huh?"

"I really like her!" Chopper said at once as Luffy smiled at her. "She seems really nice!"

"Oh, look at you," she said, rubbing some of the dirt off his cheek, "You're a mess. Well, I was thinking about taking a bath anyway, why don't you take one with me?"

"WHAT?!" Sanji cried out, hearts in his eyes. "Oh, I'm all for it! Thank you Luffy for remembering this!"

"You aren't going to watch!" Nami yelled, punching him hard.

"Nami-swwwwaaaaannnn…" he croaked out as he hit the ground with a bloody nose. Though it was hard to tell if it was from the punch or his own thoughts.

"Yohohoho, I wonder what color panties she has," Brook asked as he went off to follow closely behind, only to have Nami also ended up knocking him out. She didn't know who this woman was, but she at least deserved some privacy.

***Later***

"Come on, Nami!" Usopp begged as they followed Makino and Luffy to a small living area above the bar, which was obvious where Makino lived. They watched as she had gathered up some clothes and a first-aid kit before leading Luffy to a small bathhouse back downstairs. "It's just a memory! It's not like we're spying on them for real!"

"I don't care," she snapped, standing in front of the doorway with an angry look at them. Sanji, Usopp, Brook, and Franky were all there, trying to figure out some way to get passed Nami as Zoro and Chopper stood back, clearly not interested in looking. "No one in going in!" Nami yelled at them. "And anyone who tries deals with me!"

Robin giggled as she used her powers out of curiosity to listen to what was going on in there.

"Makino?" Luffy's voice asked as the sound of water splashed. "Why does grandpa want me to be a marine so badly?"

"That is a good question," she heard Makino answer. "Well, he wants you to be able to help people and to protect them from pirates."

"But I wanna be a pirate," Luffy said as a scrubbing sound came next. "Does that make me bad?"

"No," she laughed good-naturedly. "I don't think you can be bad if you tried, Luffy. But there are some really bad pirates in the world, so that's why we have the marines do their best to protect us from them. But I'm sure there are still some good pirates in the world."

"I wanna be a good pirate!" Luffy exclaimed, splashing some water and laughing. "I wanna go on adventures and see the world! Makino do you think I can? Huh?"

Makino giggled as she responded, "Yes, I'm sure you will someday. But I think it would be best not to tell Garp-san that."

"I'm going to be a pirate even if Grandpa says no!" Luffy declared, the loudest splash yet came and Makino laughed as the water went everywhere.

"I know," she giggled at him. "You're not the type of person who gives up their dreams easily. I'm sure that you'll be out there on the seas someday. But if you did, what would you do?"

"I'd ah… I'd…" Luffy's voice trailed off as he thought that over. "I don't know yet. I know I want to be a pirate but…?"

Robin could tell that Makino was smiling as she heard her getting out of the water. "It's ok, you don't need to decide what you want yet. You've got a long time to figure that out before you leave. But until you do, this'll be our secret ok?"

Robin giggled again as some of the boys fought with Nami, trying to get a peek inside, but soon, Makino and Luffy came back out, both of them dressed and—in Luffy's case—bandaged up. Luffy was already yawning tiredly as Makino led him to a small room in the house where a bed was already made up.

She lay him down on the bed and in a motherly way, she ran her hand through his hair before finally closed the curtains just as the moon was coming up. She closed the door quietly behind her and they heard her go back downstairs to attend to her bar again.

"That's so sweet," Nami sighed. "She's just like a mother to him…"

"But who is she?" Franky asked. "Did Luffy ever mention her to you guys?"

"Now that you mention it, Luffy doesn't talk much about his past now does he?" Zoro asked as Luffy's eyes began to close.

"None of us do," Robin spoke up, and they all looked at each other. Yeah, none of them liked to mention their pasts, even to each other. They prefer to just live through each day having fun and enjoying each other's company. They all knew enough about each other that they didn't need to know about their pasts.

But now… they just witness a small part of Luffy's childhood. His grandfather's idea of 'training' would kill a normal person, while a woman with a kind heart took care of him afterwards.

"What's happening now?" Brook asked as everything slowly faded away around them.

"I think Luffy's falling asleep," Sanji said, his heart still broken to the idea of never being able to see Makino bathing. Really, what good were memories when you couldn't see anything worth seeing?

But before the room completely disappeared around them, they could just make out a voice shouting out through the night, "Pirates! A pirate ship is docking!"

**(How is it so far? Please tell me what you think of it. I've always loved Makino, and I had a feeling that she must've been like a mother or an older sister to Luffy before he was taken to live with Dadan. So it sounds like she might've been there to protect him from Garp when he needed her as well as took care of him like how a mother would. Hope you enjoyed it.)**


	4. Promise between Men

**Chapter 4: Promise between Men. The Passing of the Hat**

When the darkness faded once again, they were back in the same bedroom where Luffy had fallen asleep in… only this time there was bright light shining through the thin curtains, and the little boy was just waking up. He was sitting up in bed, and rubbing his sleepy eyes.

"He really is cute isn't he?" Robin asked with a smile as she watched the boy tumble from the bed in a mess of blankets before blinking a little and standing up.

"I wish we knew just what was going on here," Nami whispered as she watched him. "How is this possible? How is it that we're able to see into Luffy's memories? Just what is going on?"

"We've all been asking ourselves that same question, Nami-san," Brook whispered as he watched Luffy going to the window and standing on his tiptoes to look outside. "But it seems that it is a mystery inside a problem."

"Yeah, we came here to find the present-day Luffy and go back!" Usopp called out. "Which is what we should be doing! Luffy's spent enough time down here as it is! And I don't know about you, but I don't think that he'd be too happy if he knew that we were watching his…" but before he could finish his train of thought, Luffy let out a little gasp as he turned and went running to the door, calling for Makino.

"What's wrong?" Usopp asked worriedly.

"Don't know," Robin answered as she watched him tug the door open and run downstairs with a big smile on his face. "But it doesn't seem like there's a problem…"

Zoro went to the window to see for himself. At first, he couldn't really see anything that would make Luffy so excited… the village looked the same as it did in the last memory, only now it was early morning instead of twilight. But as he squinted his eye, he could make out something that hadn't been there the night before. At the docks… silhouetted against the bright sun, was a new ship sitting at port. There was a ship with a black flag and skull.

Smiling, now understanding what this was about, he told them all to follow him and they did to find the little boy now bursting into the bar downstairs.

"Makino!" Luffy cried out happily. "Did you see it? There's a pirate ship at port!"

But as they all followed him inside, they could see that it wasn't just Makino who was there. The whole bar was filled with men, all slumped over in their seats, most of them were passed-out drunk.

As for Makino, she was standing at the bar, cleaning some glasses before she looked up at Luffy and smiled brightly at him.

"Are they all pirates?" Chopper asked as he looked over them all.

"Looks like they drunk themselves into some pretty bad hangovers," Sanji smirked as he overlooked them all.

"I hate to be them when they wake up," Zoro muttered to himself.

"Yes, Luffy I know," Makino said, still beaming happily, though her smile seemed to be a little forced as she gave the men a nervous sideways glance. "They got here last night after you went to bed. They've been here all night drinking. I'm surprised that you were able to sleep through all of it." She leaned over and patted his raven hair with an affectionate smile as Luffy looked at them all curiously.

"Oh, I didn't think it would be possible, but she's even more beautiful in the light!" Sanji sighed, hearts back in his eyes as he looked at Makino. "So beautiful…"

"Cool it lover boy," Nami sighed in annoyance. "Something tells me you aren't her type."

"Who's the kid?" asked a slightly slurred voice suddenly, "He your little brother?"

Looking over Makino's shoulder, the Straw Hats saw that the only man at the bar was just raising his head from where he was sleeping a second ago. He had an easy-going smile and his face was bright red from all the sake he drank… the most noticeable features about him though were the three scars across his left eye as well as his bright red hair. And on his head was something very familiar to them all…

"Hey, that's Luffy's hat!" Chopper said, pointing to him in surprise.

"Yes," Zoro said lightly, looking at the man with new interest. "Luffy did say that he got that hat from a pirate."

"Red-hair Shanks," Robin said softly. "This is the first time I've ever seen him."

Makino smiled at him. "Sadly no," she answered. "But I look after him when his grandfather's not here."

"Where'd you come from old man?" Luffy asked him curiously and at that, the men who weren't passed out suddenly started laughing—but they weren't the only ones, for the Straw Hats burst out laughing as well at the look on Shanks face.

"As honest as ever I see," Robin laughed.

"I see that his manners haven't changed a bit since he was a kid," Sanji also laughed as Brook held onto his middle at that.

"It hurts!" Brook laughed. "My gut feels like it's gonna burst from laughing! Not that I have a gut to burst! Yohohoho!"

"Old man?" Shanks snapped at him. "I'm not even in my thirties yet, you brat!"

"Compared to him you are old, captain!" a fat pirate commented, enjoying a slab of met on a dagger before falling over from his seat as he started laughing too.

"Who asked you?" Shanks demanded.

Makino led Luffy to the other side of the bar and set him up on the stool, "Now, now, Luffy don't anger the customers."

Zoro wasn't sure if he was the only one who noticed the slight nervousness in Makino's tone through all the laughing. Apparently, he wasn't…

"It's all right, Makino," Shanks sighed, waving his hand at his tipsy crew. "Believe me, it doesn't take much to get these losers laughing."

"Who the hell are you?" Luffy asked, looking at him.

"He has a short attention span," Nami sighed, shaking her head.

"Where did all this people come from?" Luffy asked Makino with bright interest.

Shanks went back to his food. "The name's Shanks. I'm a pirate."

Luffy's eyes lit up with stars as he yelled out in excitement, "Did you say you are a pirate? As in you guys aren't Marines?" Luffy quickly crossed the room to his side. "Does that mean you go on adventures? Tell me!"

"The little guy has a death wish," Zoro laughed at Shanks surprised look—as if he expected the kid to go and hide at the mention of pirates. "If Shanks was like most pirates, he probably would've killed him a long time ago."

"Yes, and I think that all this is really interesting, but we really need to start getting out of here," Nami said as the image disappeared again.

"Not like we have much choice," Zoro shrugged. The next memory came back, and they were still in the bar, this time though, the pirates didn't seem to be as drunk as they had been before. The tavern scene was a lively one, a pirate crew was partying and laughing, drinking and eating and cracking jokes with each other.

"Wish I could have some of that," Zoro sighed, looking at all the bottles of sake that were being passed around.

"Well, too bad!" Usopp said to him, slapping his chest irritably. "If this is a memory then we won't be having anymore luck than with Garp walking through us."

"Yes," Brook sighed. "It was so terrifying, that I thought my heart had stopped. Ah, not that I have one."

"Oh, look!" Franky said, pointing, and they saw that Luffy was still sitting at the same stool he had been before, only now he looked a little older and was now wearing a bandage on his cheek.

"Looks like some time had passed since we last saw them," Robin reasoned.

"Yeah, Luffy did mention that Shanks visited his hometown for about a year," Usopp said, thinking back to the day that he and Luffy first met. "So this had to been some time before that."

"So let me see if I got this straight," Shanks said to Luffy, sitting exactly where he had been before. "You wanna be a pirate because your gramps said not to?"

"I don't wanna be a Marine!" Luffy said loudly. "It doesn't look or sound like it'd be any fun at all! Training all day, following rules, you can't go anywhere without permission! That's why I think it'd be a lot more fun being a pirate!"

"Yeah, that makes sense," Franky laughed. "Who'd want to work for the government anyway? It'd take all the fun outta life!"

"Well, I guess I can't argue with any of that," Shanks said, thinking that over. "Yeah, it's great being a pirate… I mean sure, it'd be better without the bounty hunters and Marines on our tails all the time, but job hazard I suppose."

"Why'd you become a pirate?" Luffy asked him.

"Hmmm," Shanks said, thinking it all over. "Don't know anymore," he finally confessed. "I guess I just wanted to go out and have as much fun as possible. Like you said, I knew that it'd be freer than locking yourself up in Marine Headquarters for most of your life. I mean, when was the last time you heard about Marines going out for adventures? Marines… they're given an order, and they do it no matter what… the best thing about being a pirate is that you can do whatever you want, whenever you want."

"Yep, I can see right away that this guy is a big influence on Luffy," Sanji smiled. "Almost like seeing an older version of the rubber brain…"

Luffy's eyes lit up at that. "Then, take me with you on your next adventure, Shanks!" Luffy said at once. "I want to be a pirate, too!"

Shanks laughed out loud. "How can a boy like you become a pirate?" he asked him in a teasing way.

"Why not?" Luffy demanded hotly.

"Luffy," said a voice next to them and they looked in time to see a man leaning back in his chair with his feet up on the table. Usopp gulped down a gasp, staring at him as he felt cold sweat on his face. The man's skin was tanned and sea worn as his sandy blond hair fell over his face… but he was looking directly to the blue bandana he was wearing… and the name written on it… 'Yasopp'.

"Dad?" he whispered softly.

"Dad?" Chopper asked in amazement. "You mean _that's_ your dad?! You never mentioned that your dad's a pirate!"

"Oh, right, I remember when we first met, Luffy said something about meeting your old man," Zoro said thinking back.

Usopp sniffed a little, finally getting a good look at his father.

"I can definitely see a family resemblance," Franky smiled.

Usopp grinned proudly as he exclaimed to them all loudly, "That's right! It only makes sense! After all, this brave warrior of the seas had to get his talent from somewhere."

"That's for sure," Nami whispered to herself, rolling her eyes.

"That's awesome, Usopp!" Chopper cried, stars in his eyes.

"It must be nice for you to get a good look at your father," Brook said softly, though it was hard to tell without skin, but he appeared to have been smiling.

"Listen," Yasopp said, pointing at Luffy. "It's not about how well you can or can't swim. A pirate is a lot more than that."

"But I can fight!" Luffy said, punching the air in front of him. "My punches as strong as pistols!"

"Are you kidding?" Usopp asked, sweatdropped. "They're now stronger than cannons!"

"A pistol? Wow… really?" Shanks asked, going back to his plate of food in front of him and the other pirates started laughing at him.

"WOULD YOU STOP LAUGHING AT ME?!" Luffy shouted at them and the Straw Hats couldn't help but laugh along as well.

"You're still just a kid," a man, Lucky Roo, said with a cheerful smile, enjoying a piece of meat.

"You're about the same age as my kid," Yasopp added and Usopp couldn't stop the proud smile on his face.

"I'm not a kid!" Luffy shouted out, gritting his teeth together as he glared at them all. "I'm a grown up!"

"Relax, it's nothing to be mad about. Here, have some juice," Shanks said, putting a small glass in front of him.

As always, when face to face with food, Luffy's anger disappeared like magic. "Oh, thanks!" he said, taking a sip before Shanks started laughing so hard that he was pounding the bar with his hand.

"What's so funny now?" Nami asked.

She got her answer at once when Shanks roared out laughing, "See? You are a kid! What kind of pirate likes juice?"

"But I like juice," Chopper said in confusion.

"Shank's is just teasing him, Chopper," Sanji laughed. "I like this guy already…"

"They seem like very good people," Brook added. "Like they have a lot of fun no matter where they go."

"That's a dirty trick!" Luffy shouted at him angrily. As everyone else started laughing he snapped at them all, "Stop laughing at me!"

"It doesn't seem like it took much to get Luffy angry," Franky laughed so hard that tears were in his eyes.

"Yes, he seemed to have had quite the short temper," Robin laughed. "These days, it takes a lot more to make him mad. However, at the same time, he still acts like this little kid right here."

"Yeah," Nami laughed, "Which just proves that he's an immature kid like I always thought."

"I prefer to think of it as being young at heart," Robin smiled.

"Luffy, how about you calm down and eat?" Makino's voice asked as she came out from the back, carrying another bottle of sake and put it in front of Shanks before beaming at Luffy. "How about it?" she asked.

"Oh, he's so lucky to be waited on such a kind-hearted woman!" Sanji croaked out, falling to his knees as he looked at Makino. "Oh, love… the likes of which I've never seen before… she's enchanted my like a spell… as we speak I'm falling deeper and deeper into her eyes…"

"Would you shut up you idiot?" Zoro grumbled.

"Are you ready to die yet you shitty swordsman?!" Sanji cried, jumping to his feet, fire starting to burn on his leg at once.

"You really think you can take me on?" Zoro shot back, his hands going for his swords again.

"Would you boys knock it off?" Nami yelled at them in frustration. "God, I can't hear myself think with you two around."

"Nami-swan…" Sanji began, swooning back at her, but she told him to shut up as Luffy was telling Makino that he'd pay her back with his treasure tab.

"Treasure tab?" Chopper repeated, you could almost see the question marks floating above his head. "What's that?"

"I think he means that he'll pay her back later when he gets some treasure," Sanji said, having recovered from his newly broken heart.

"The poor woman," Nami sighed with a smile. "Letting him eat at her bar without paying…"

"Makino-san's generosity knows no bounds!" Brook cried out happily.

"But how's he gonna pay her back with treasure when he doesn't have any?" Usopp asked, his eyebrows raised.

"What treasure?" Shanks asked, obviously thinking the same thing. "You shouldn't lie you know."

"Oh, I don't think he is," Franky laughed. "Luffy can't lie to save his life."

"That's for sure," Nami agreed as they all nodded.

"I am not!" Luffy said determinedly, before looking back to her and saying firmly, "I'm definitely going to be a pirate someday! And when I come across a lot of treasure, I'll come back and pay you with that!"

Makino smiled and laughed. "I look forward to it!"

"I really like her!" Chopper said at once as Luffy smiled at her. "I hope we get to meet her for real someday!"

Nami laughed, "I can tell she's got the patience of a saint."

"Hey, Shanks," Luffy said, his mouth full of food and Sanji sighed, muttering to himself, "I see that his manners haven't changed much."

"Hmm?" Shanks asked him as he enjoyed his drink.

"How long are you going to stay this time?"

"Well…" Shanks said, thinking it all over for a moment, "It's been a nice here. But we decided that we'll probably set sail a couple more times and then we'll leave this town for good and head back north."

"Only a few more times…" Luffy said softly, taking a long time to swallow as he glanced down at his food. Makino gave him a sad smile and sighed from where she was cleaning glasses behind the counter.

"Am I missing something here?" Usopp asked them.

"It's obvious that Luffy doesn't want them to leave, Usopp," Nami pointed out. "He's sad because he'll be forced to say goodbye to them all for good."

But just then, Luffy looked up and said to Shanks, "I'll be a great swimmer by then!"

At that, Shanks started to laugh again. "Sure… we'll see about that."

"In other words, no," Franky said knowingly.

Just then, the door to the tavern was literally kicked in and a group of men came inside. There were a large number of them, all of them dressed mostly alike with smug smiles on their suspicious-looking faces. As if they were plotting something…

"Who are these losers?" Zoro asked darkly.

"Look like bandits to me," Sanji claimed, remembering seeing bandits sometimes back when he was still a chief at the Baratie. The pirates fell silent, looking up, as if curious to see what these men were going to do.

"Sorry for the interruption," the man in the front said, obviously the leader of the group, before marching in. Luffy looked up at him in confusion as Makino stopped cleaning the glass and seemed to become tense, as if expecting a fight to break out.

"So these are the pirates I've heard so much about," the man said, stepping on the door and leaving a boot-shaped print in it. "They all look like idiots to me."

"Doesn't he have any idea who he's talking to?" Nami asked incredulously. "Shanks is one of the Four Emperors after all."

"Well, it is possible that Shanks might not have become an Emperor just yet," Robin said reasonably. "This happened over ten years ago after all…"

"Either way," Zoro said with a rather evil smirk. "But it looks like we're heading to a good show if we're lucky."

"How would we be lucky to watch people get killed?" Nami snapped at him.

The pirate crew didn't say anything as they kept a close watch on the bandits, still waiting to see what they would do. The group approached the bar, with Luffy watching as Makino walked forward to greet them. "Welcome. What can I do for you?" she asked. There was a hint of uneasiness in her tone, but she stood in front of him with a forced smile.

"We're bandits," the man smirked at her.

"Really?" Usopp asked sarcastically. "We hadn't notice."

"We're not here to destroy your bar. We just need about ten barrels of sake."

"That's no way to address a lady," Sanji snarled, hating anyone who threatened a woman.

"I'm sorry, but I'm afraid that we're all out of sake at the moment," Makino answered him politely.

"Hmm?" the bandit asked, his eyebrows raised, "That's strange. These pirates seem to be enjoying themselves here. What are they drinking then? Water?"

"Those jerks," Sanji warned. "They better not do anything to her just because they don't have any drink for them."

"It's sake," Makino answered him, "But it's also the last of our stock."

"I have to say she's kinda growing on me too," Zoro smirked. "She's got a lot of guts."

Shanks looked up at them. "Oh sorry," he said to them all, "Looks like we went and drank the place dry. But if you want, there is still a bottle left that's unopened." Shanks then held up the bottle that Makino had just brought him. "If you want it, it's all yours."

The bandit's eyes suddenly darkened, as if he couldn't believe that Shanks would dare speak in front of him before he shattered the bottle, the drink splashing all over Shanks and the bar. Makino and Luffy gasped while the bandits all laughed at the sight of it; though the pirates didn't seem fazed by it at all as they turned to their captain—whose head was down with the hat shading his eyes so they couldn't see his face.

"What's with him?" Nami yelled out furiously. "I know that his crew drank all the sake, but that's no reason to act like a jerk!"

"What a waste of perfectly good sake," Zoro sighed tragically.

"Do you even know who you're talking to?" the bandit said coldly. "I am a bandit. I'm a wanted man who's worth eight million beli."

"Big deal," Sanji said, puffing a little on his cigarette. "We could take you out without breaking a sweat."

The bandit went on, "One bottle won't be nearly enough. Don't take me lightly."

It was quiet for a brief moment before Shanks looked up, "Now the floor's all wet. Sorry about that Makino."

"Is it just me, or does that sound like something Luffy would have said?" Franky asked, tilting his head.

Robin giggled. "It's not just you, Franky. I guess now we know where Luffy learned that from."

Shanks then knelt down and started picking up the shards of glass and asked, "Do you have a mop?"

"Though I doubt that Luffy would offer to help clean up," Nami added as Makino shook herself awake and went around from behind the bar. "O-Oh, no, it's fine, captain," she said at once, "I can manage it."

But as she stepped out, the mountain bandit drew his sword and slashed it along the bar, cutting a groove into the wood and sending everything on it crashing to the floor to make an even bigger mess.

"Well, if you enjoying cleaning," he sneered at Shanks, who was now leaned up against the bar, now soaked with sake. "Now there's more to clean." He put the sword back and said, "No point wasting our time here while there's no sake. Let's go, men!" he then called to his men and with that, the band of bandits turned and filed out of the tavern—all of them roaring with laughter.

"Later, cowards," the leader called over his shoulder with a sneer as he left. The Straw Hats were now looking over at Luffy who was shaking in his seat—but not from fear, rather with anger. The only sound left was coming from the remaining door swinging squeakily from its hinges.

Makino quickly kneeled down next to Shanks. "Are you alright?" she asked worriedly, using the towel in her hand to help clean him up. "Are you hurt anywhere, Captain?"

Shanks merely waved his hand at her. "I'm fine, it's no problem" he reassured her before he grinned. And as if he broke a curse, his crew broke out into loud, energetic laughter at their captain, with Shanks laughing louder than any of them.

"They really got you!" Yasopp yelled laughing. "That's funny!"

"You look pretty dumb on the floor there, Captain!" Lucky Roo laughed as well as Shanks kept laughing loud with Makino still there trying to clean him up.

"Man, it's like I'm looking at Luffy here," Zoro chuckled.

"I know," Nami said shaking her head, "Looks like Shanks was more of a role model to him instead of just a friend."

"But Luffy doesn't look to happy," Chopper pointed out, seeing Luffy jump up onto his seat, looking furious at them all with his fists clenched tightly at his sides.

"WHY ARE YOU LAUGHING?!" Luffy then yelled and caused everyone to look over at him. "THAT WASN'T COOL!" he went on angrily. "WHY DIDN'T YOU FIGHT BACK? NO MATTER HOW MANY THERE ARE OR HOW STRONG THEY LOOK, IF YOU DON'T FIGHT BACK THEN YOU'RE NOT A MAN! NOW I SEE I WAS WRONG ABOUT YOU GUYS!"

"Really?" Chopper asked worriedly.

"Nah," Zoro smiled, waving his hand down at him. "It's one of the first rules you gotta learn out here. Sometimes there are fights that aren't worth getting angry over." He looked over to Nami as he said that, remembering the bar fight they had in Jaya over two years ago, and how angry she had been at them for refusing to fight. But this time, he could see that she was frowning slightly, as if thinking about what he just said.

"I know how you feel, Luffy," Shanks said calmly, looking up at him from the floor, "But all he did was spill sake on me. It's not worth getting upset over."

"I know that we've never met this man," Brook said, looking at him with new respect, "But I already like him."

"He's a man among men," Franky said proudly, his eyes watering a little at how strong-willed the captain of the Red-Haired pirates was.

"Whatever," Luffy huffed at him as he looked over to the chest sitting next to him and then reached in to grab something. The Straw Hats leaned over to see what it was he had taken and saw an unusual fruit in his hands.

"Yow!" Franky asked in surprise. "What's that? It's the funniest looking fruit I've ever seen."

"That's because it's a Devil's Fruit," Robin informed him with a smile.

"Really?" Nami asked curiously. "I've never seen one."

"Is it…?" Usopp said, but before he could finish speaking, Luffy took a big bite of it.

"So that's what happened," Nami said, smacking her forehead. "Idiot has no idea what it is."

"Very few people do," Robin smiled sadly, thinking back to when she had accidently eaten her Devil Fruit years ago. When she had gone to visit the archeologists at the Tree of Knowledge, they had been studying the Devil's fruit. She hadn't eaten anything at all the night before because her aunt had sent her to bed without food and in the morning she had run off before her aunt would force her to do even more chores. When she saw the fruit there on the table, she grabbed it without thinking.

"Yeah," Chopper agreed with a nod. "I didn't know the fruit I ate would do this to me."

"Well, you were still a baby reindeer at the time right?" Usopp pointed out in a teasing voice.

"Shut up!" Chopper yelled, his face a little red when Nami gave a little 'awwing' sound.

Shanks had wiped off the straw hat before he put it back on and looked up at Luffy. "You shouldn't eat out of frustration you know…"

"Shut up," Luffy said through a mouthful of fruit.

Shanks blinked before they widened in panic, realizing that something was wrong. "Wait! What are you eating?!" he shouted just as Luffy finished swallowing.

"Too late now," Robin giggled.

"LUFFY!" Shanks yelled, getting up and staring at him in horror. "Don't tell me you just ate the fruit that was inside that chest?"

Luffy just looked at him in confusion, not understanding why he seemed so upset. Instead of answering, Shanks grabbed him and turned him upside down, shaking him. "Spit it out! Spit out every piece."

"What—are—you—doing?" Luffy cried and that was when his legs stretched out and he literally fell flat on his face. He hung there comically for a few seconds before he bounced right back up.

The Straw Hats all started to laugh, having seen this so many times that they were used to it, but seeing the stunned looks on everyone's faces was just priceless. "So that's how it happened," Sanji laughed. "He never saw what hit him…"

"Yohohoho," Brook laughed sympathetically. "Poor Luffy-san."

"Though it's a good thing that he did eat it if you think about it," Nami beamed. "After all, it's because of that annoying ability that he's still alive after everything that's happened to us over the last two years."

"Does this mean…?" one of the pirates gasped out.

"He couldn't have…?" Yasopp gasped.

Luffy was staring ahead of him, his face slightly red from where it hit the floor. But his eyes were wide in shock as he asked, "What just happened?"

Shanks lifted him up so that they were eye to eye and he shouted out, "LUFFY THAT WAS A DEVIL FRUIT! THE DEVIL FRUITS ARE THE TREASURES OF THE SEA! IF YOU EAT IT YOU LOSE THE ABILITY TO SWIM FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE BUT THE ONE YOU ATE ALSO TURNS YOUR BODY TO RUBBER!"

The pirates started panicking and Luffy stared freaking out. "WHAAAAAAAT? NO, IT CAN'T!"

"YOU'RE AN IDIOT!" Shanks yelled.

Nami shook her head fondly. "He is isn't he?" she asked. "But then, what does that make Shanks for leaving something like that lying around?"

Suddenly the image faded and they were back in the darkness and Franky asked, "So did all of you eat your Devil Fruits by accident?"

"I did," Robin answered. "I think it was just before I turned eight did I eat mine. The archeologists on my home island were studying it…"

"And you ate it like that?" Nami asked in surprise.

"Well, I'd never seen a Devil Fruit before, so I had no idea what it was until it was too late," Robin answered with a smile. "But it has been useful of course…"

"Yeah," Chopper agreed, jumping up so that he was on Zoro's shoulder. "I remember when I ate mine!"

He was still that blue nose little reindeer who had been forced to walk behind the rest of his herd. His herd rejected him because of his nose… whenever they ate, he was forced to stay behind and wait until they finished grazing on whatever plant they could find.

On this particular day, his stomach was so hungry that he was in pain. He was starting to straggle behind the rest of the herd until he spotted the strange looking fruit. It wasn't like anything he had ever seen before and couldn't help but stare at it as it lay, half-buried, in the snow. He remembered putting his nose to it to sniff it, but couldn't smell anything. He turned it over with his blue nose and his stomach was now crying with hunger. Unable to help himself, he had devoured all of it, crying at the exertion of swallowing each unpalatable mouthful all the while.

"After that," Chopper said, "I slowly started transforming!"

"What about you Brook?" Usopp asked. "Did you eat yours by accident too?"

"No," Brook admitted. "I remember that day as if it happened yesterday. Not long after I joined the Rumbar Pirates, we got into a fierce battle with some Marines that had been chasing us back in the West Blue. The Devil Fruit came bobbing up from all the wreckage…"

"So you knew what it was beforehand?" Zoro asked.

"At first, we couldn't decide if one of us eat it, or if we should sell it," Brook went on. "It was a problem… none of us had ever seen one before and we didn't have the slightest clue to what it could do. But it was decided that I would decide."

"Why you?" Sanji asked.

"Yohohoho, because I was the one who fished it out of the sea!" he laughed. "It was a rule on our ship. Whatever we find, we decide what to do with it. In the end, I couldn't help myself and ate it."

"And what did you do when nothing happened?" Franky asked.

"I thought that it was just a fake at first," Brook confessed. "I didn't feel any different, nor did I suddenly have any powers. But I learned the hard way that it was the real thing when I next went for a swim! I almost drowned! Yohoho!"

"And you figured out what kind it was later?" Usopp asked.

"Merely a guess," Brook answered. "It wasn't until I died and came back as All-Bones Brook did I know for sure!"

"Well, it's good," Robin smiled. "Otherwise we never would've met you."

"Yohoho! Your words are so kind, Robin-san!" Brook laughed. He was about to ask if he could see her panties, but before he could, the scene changed. And just like that, the scene changed. They were still in the village just a little ways away from the bar—they could see it just up the road. Luffy was there, skipping along as a few people looked over at him.

"Hey Rubber-boy!" a fish monger said as he passed by them. "Why are you in such a good mood lately? The pirates set sail without you, you know." He then smirked and added, "Won't be much of a pirate if you can't even swim."

Luffy just laughed and waved cheerfully at him. "It doesn't matter if I can't swim!" he said happily. "If I sink like an anchor, then I'll just become a pirate that doesn't fall overboard."

"Who does he think he's kidding?" Usopp asked, remembering all the times that Luffy needed to be rescued from drowning. "If he even takes a bath it's hard for him."

"I'm glad I ate the Gum Gum fruit!" he said, grabbing his face and pulling it so that it stretched out, causing all the villagers to all stare. "Look what I can do!"

At that moment, a middle-aged man approached them. This man had a cleft chin, grayish-white mustache and beard, and was wearing oval glasses—he was also leaning on a walking stick as he approached Luffy.

"Who's this guy?" Zoro asked unimpressed.

"You think being stared at because you're a freak is a great thing, eh?" he demanded from Luffy. "Well, this village doesn't need any more idiots, sonny!" Robin's eyes darkened at that, remembering how the other children had been scared of her after she ate the Devil's Fruit and ran away from her like a monster. Next to her, she could hear Chopper sniffling a little, and knew that he could understand what it was like.

"A freak?" Nami repeated angrily. "That's a terrible thing to say to someone!"

"Oh," Luffy said happily with a little wave. "Good morning Mayor!"

"Luffy-san doesn't seem to mind," Brook answered happily.

"Of course not," Zoro answered. "He's proud of that."

"So he's the major?" Robin repeated a little surprised.

"He looks really grumpy," Chopper stated, not sure if he liked the man.

"I suppose you would too if you had to put up with Luffy," Sanji pointed out.

"For the last time Luffy, I won't allow you to become a pirate!" the major declared. "It'd make the village look bad! Now the captain's not such a bad fellow but you stay away from those pirates."

"Guess he didn't listen," Robin said with a smile.

"I think that's a safe guess," Nami laughed.

Luffy just stuck his fingers in his ears as if he couldn't hear him and went charging on ahead like nothing happened.

The scene changed again suddenly, and the next then they knew was that they were back in the tavern with Luffy and Makino. It was quite a different place when it was just the two of them there and no laughing pirates drinking and poking fun at Luffy. As for Luffy, he was sitting at the bar with a glass of juice in front of him while Makino was cleaning up some of the glasses behind the bar.

"Almost don't recognize it when it's empty," Franky said, looking around.

"Yeah, tell me about it," Usopp asked, looking around, hoping for another glimpse of his father. "It's a little creepy to be honest. I wonder where everyone is…"

"You need to start paying attention," Robin answered him. "Shanks told Luffy that they would visit only a few more times before they left for good."

"Oh, right," Usopp answered hitting his hand with a fist. "Luffy did say that he hadn't seen Shanks since he was a little kid."

"Luffy doesn't look happy about it," Chopper said as he watched Luffy play around with the glass in a bored way, his face looking slightly grim.

"The Captain's been away for awhile now," Makino said, breaking the silence, "You miss them don't you, Luffy?"

"Not a bit," he said stubbornly. "I still haven't forgiven them for that thing with the bandits yet."

He finished his drink before he leaned over the bar, the glass still in his teeth as he went on, "I overestimated Shanks and the others. I thought they were the coolest pirates. What a letdown."

"Really?" Makino asked him with a knowing smile. "I think being able to laugh after what happened is much cooler."

"Makino, you just don't get it," Luffy said persistently. "There are times where a man must fight!"

"I agree with that," Zoro grinned. "But there are also times to know when to back down."

"Really?" Makino asked with a bright smile. "I do not understand these things."

"Ah… Luffy-san is so lucky to have known such a kind and beautiful woman looking after him," Brook said. "I'm jealous."

"She truly has a heart of gold," Sanji sighed longingly. "I must come and visit her one of these days…"

Makino tilted her head to the side and smiled kindly. "I'm sure they'll be back soon."

"Yes, I agree," Robin said with a sad smile as she watched the two. "It must be nice to have someone who cares for you so much."

"Hmm?" Chopper asked. "What are you talking about, Robin?"

"Just saying that I wish I had someone who cared about me like she seems to with him," she said, watching Makino put away the glasses and ask Luffy if he wanted something to eat. "I mean… she acts almost like a mother or an older sister to him. She's like family in a way…"

"Luffy's family? You mean like his grandpa or Ace…?" Chopper then asked, before realizing what he said and clamped his hooves over his mouth as if he said something bad. They all looked to each other—all of them thinking the same thing. Not one of them had ever once mentioned Ace… they had been so glad to see each other after two long years of training that they never had time to talk about anything that happened during the Whitebeard War. Luffy had only mentioned Ace once since then… that was when he had been talking to Camie about wanting to see Jinbe when they visited Fishman Island.

"Speaking of… Ace…" Usopp said slowly and carefully, "Where is he?"

Sanji breathed smoke from his cigarette as he answered, "I think that's a simple answer. It could just be that they haven't met yet. After all, Ace was adopted by Luffy's grandfather right?"

"So will we see Ace again?!" Chopper asked with his voice muffled through his hooves.

"If we're really seeing Luffy's memories, then there's a good chance," Robin said, her thumb underneath her chin as she thought that over. "But that's the whole problem."

"What do you mean?" Chopper asked, lowering his hooves and looking at her in confusion.

"The problem is that we're watching these private memories," Zoro said darkly and that shut them all up when they realized what they were doing.

"Yow!" Franky said at once anxiously. "Does that mean that Luffy doesn't know that we're watching?"

"I honestly don't know," Robin answered as she continued to watch Luffy and Makino talk to each other. "But if these truly _are_ his memories, which I'm sure they are, than there is a good chance that we're watching them without the captain's knowledge or permission."

"Ack!" Usopp called out in panic. "Quick! Turn it all off then! I wouldn't want it if someone was looking into my head without me knowing!"

"Yes! We need to leave!" Chopper called out hurriedly.

"I would if I could," Robin answered him. "But I don't know how this is even happening right now."

Nami frowned at her and asked, "But what are we supposed to do? We're stuck here watching his life story?"

"I don't know," Robin answered again sadly. "I only know what I told you. Whether or not he knows that we're watching is the question. But until we can figure out a way out of here then we will watch."

"Oi!" Usopp said to her, waving his arms around. "That's not fair! If Luffy's at the Gates of Hell then he deserves to keep his memories private if he wants them private doesn't he?"

"Would you all leave her alone?" Sanji snapped at Usopp. "If Robin-chan doesn't know how to get out of here, then no one does."

They all looked at each other, knowing how touché they all were when it came to their pasts. All of them had their secrets. And Luffy had never pressed them to talk about things they rather not.

However, they were now literally watching Luffy's history.

Zoro gave a frustrated sigh and frowned. "There isn't really much we can do about it," he said, "We don't really have a choice in the matter."

Nami bit her lip. "But Zoro…" she began. "I don't like this."

"None of us do," he said, folding his arms and shutting his eye. "But what else can we do? What? You suddenly know how to get out of this place?"

"Well, no but…" she stammered.

"Until you do figure it out, we're stuck here," Zoro stated finally.

"But…" Chopper began.

"Chopper," Sanji said, folding his legs under him so he could sit down on the floor, surprisingly on Zoro's side for once. "We all feel the same way. But until we find a way out of here, we're stuck watching it. So the sooner we get out, the sooner that we can leave Luffy's past his business."

"But who knows what we could end up seeing!" Nami cried out. "It's not fair to him. I mean… what if we see something that he doesn't want us to see?"

Chopper shifted on his feet in an upset way. "What do we tell Luffy when we find him?"

"Maybe it's better if we don't mention it," Usopp said to himself.

"No, we will," Zoro said without room for an argument. "We don't have his permission to be seeing any of this. If it were me, I'd be angry as hell. Hard to say what Luffy will do when he finds out, but how can we expect him to trust us if we can't even tell him the truth?"

They all fell silent for a moment. "As much as it pains me to admit it," Sanji stated gloomily, his eyes still on Makino. "Moss Head here is right. Until we get out of here and find Luffy, we'll watch this. And when we do find him, we'll be honest. No matter what we see, it won't change the fact that he's our captain."

Before anyone could answer, the door to the tavern was kicked open again, putting an end to their conversation. Looking up quickly, they saw that it was the same bandits from before who walked in. They were all looking around, as if expecting to see someone there… all of them smirking horribly as if planning some great big joke.

"Them again?" Franky asked darkly. "Darn… I was hoping to see more with Shanks. He at least had a sense of humor."

"Yeah, but this can't be good," Nami said softly as the bandits looked around.

"I see that those pirates aren't around today," the leader said with a satisfied smirk as he walked in, looking almost disappointed. "We were passing through and we thought we drop in for some sake."

They all took the seats and the leader barked at Makino, "Why are you standing there? We're customers!" He slammed his hand onto the table and yelled out, "SAKE!"

Makino put down the glass at once and cried out, "Yes, of course!" and turned to get them all some at once.

Sanji looked furious, now standing in front of the leader and yelled out, "Oi! That's not how you address a lady!"

"Sanji, they can't hear you!" Usopp told him.

Sanji was shaking with anger as he yelled out, "I know! But I can't stand by and watch a lady being treated like this! This sucks! I can't even kick this bastard!"

"We had a great time that day!" one of the bandits said. "Did you see the looks on their loser faces?"

Luffy looked up at them all at once, shaking in anger.

"They couldn't do a thing," another laughed. "Even after you gave their captain a sake bath, boss!"

"What a bunch of cowards!"

"What horrible people!" Brook called out angrily. "Just because they don't waste their time harassing others doesn't make them cowards."

"Apparently you aren't the only one who thinks that," Robin said, looking at Luffy. They all glanced and could see the anger cross Luffy's face.

They all roared with laughter as their stupid-looking leader said, "I really wanted to kill them all. That's what all pirates are after all. Cowards on the seas…"

At that, Luffy got up and yelled as he jumped up onto his seat, "SHUT UP!" At those words, everyone in the bar was now looking at him as he kept screaming out, "DON'T MESS WITH SHANKS'S CREW! HE'S NOT A COWARD!"

Makino's looked terrified as she grabbed him and tried to tell him to be quiet. "Luffy, stop it," she cried, but he ignored her as he went on to yell, "Don't talk about Shanks and the others like they're idiots!"

"What was that, brat?" the leader asked him with a scowl. "You have a death wish?"

"A lot of people think that," Zoro admitted coolly.

"Luffy, please, sit down," Makino whispered to him in a pleading way.

But Luffy wasn't listening as he glared up at the bandit, "I said for you to shut up about Shanks!"

"Why do I have a bad feeling that this isn't going to end well?" Nami asked, her hands on her hips. "Luffy's hot-head is now going to get him into a lot of trouble if he's not careful!"

"Yes," Brook said worriedly. "But wasn't Luffy-san upset with Shanks-san too?"

"They're friends," Sanji pointed out. "If you're friends, you can insult each other all you like. But if it's some random jerks like that, they deserve to get told off."

"Yeah, but he's still just a little kid," Usopp pointed out. "He's not as strong as he is now!"

"I don't think he's thinking about that," Robin said.

"When does he _ever_ think?" Nami sighed.

And like that, the bandit leader reached out and grabbed Luffy by his shirt, and holding him up to his face. "Listen, you little brat, you need to learn who you're messing with."

"Let me go!" Luffy yelled, now fighting to get away.

Makino rushed forward and grabbed the bandit's other arm. "Please, sir! Let him go! He didn't mean to…"

But the bandit wasn't listening as he shoved her away and she hit the bar and stumbled to the ground.

"WHY THAT PIECE OF SHIT!" Sanji yelled as he took a running leap and tried to kick him, only for his foot to pass through like smoke. "Damn it!" he cursed out again. "How dare he get away for treating a lady like that? If I ever met up with him in the present then I'm gonna KILL him!"

"Makino!" Luffy cried, now furious as he kicked harder than ever. "You can't do something like that to her! You're going to pay for that!"

"Thank you!" Sanji cried out, tears in his eyes. "Someone agrees with me! She's too beautiful to be treated like this by such scum!"

"Ahhh!" Chopper cried out in panic as they watched the bandits leave the tavern, taking Luffy with them, "Now what are they gonna do?!"

"What all scum do," Sanji hissed furiously, when they followed them. "Continue to be scum!"

"Interesting," the bandit leader said as he watched Luffy's body stretch out. "Yeah, looks like punches and kicks are no good."

"Damn!" Luffy yelled as he tried to pull himself free. "Say you're sorry!"

"A rubber-man?" the bandit said looking at him curiously. "I never imagined there were such strange creatures in the world."

"Let me go!" Luffy yelled again, as the bandit threw him down to the ground and after a few kicks; placed his boot on his head to keep it down. Even though they knew it wouldn't hurt him, the Straw Hats were quickly growing angrier with each second.

"Does anyone mind if I kill him?" Zoro asked, his hand back on one of his swords.

"If you can," Franky said in frustration, aiming his hand at the bandit's head. "But we can't even touch the bastard."

"This is torture," Usopp yelled furiously. "We're stuck here watching this and can't do anything about it."

"A different type of human," the bandit said with an evil grin. "He must be worth good money if we sell him."

"What did he just say?" Brook demanded crossly.

"You heard right," Usopp said, gritting his teeth, his hand going to his slingshot.

"Damn it!" Luffy cursed again as he fought to get the bandit off him. "I won't forgive you for this!"

"Why so upset?" the lead bandit asked smugly. "We were just enjoying a nice drink and you had to come along and ruin it."

"Yes, you did!" Luffy shouted, not able to speak clearly with the boot in his face, "Apologize right now!"

The bandit just laughed at him as he pressed down harder with his foot.

"He's really starting to tick me off," Zoro growled, his hand twitching on his sword as if aching to draw it.

"You're not the only one," Brook said, also sounding angry. "They're the sort of rotten people I hate! Those who devalue life! I can't stand the smell of them, though I do not have a nose to smell with!"

"Now is not the time, Brook!" Usopp yelled.

"Please! Let the child go!"

The Straw Hats, and everyone else turned to see Makino, hands clasped tightly looking terrified as she breathed hard, the Mayor was there with her as they stood in front of the bandits.

"Wah!" Sanji called out, hearts back and his legs twirled around. "Makino! My love… are you alright?!"

Nami finally had enough and yelled out, as she delivered a hard punch to his head, "She can't see you dumbass!"

"Nami… swaaaann," he croaked out, a slight nosebleed starting up again as he fell to the ground.

"Makino, Mayor," Luffy gasped out.

The Mayor came forward and he said, "I don't know what Luffy did, and I have no intention to fight with you because of it! But enough!" He then fell to his knees and begged, "I'll even pay you if you want; just please, let the boy go."

"I guess he's not such a bad guy after all," Usopp said, glad that this was going to end well.

The bandit smirked. "The old man knows how the world works," he said calmly. "But… no!"

"What?" Chopper yelled out, his eyes popping out. "He's not going to let Luffy go!?"

"Did you really expect him too?" Nami asked angrily, for some reason, thinking of Arlong. "Jerks like him never keep their word even if they give it to you."

"But it's too late now," the bandit went on. "I cannot spare him… you see…" he kicked Luffy harder. "He made me angry. I cannot let a kid this weak insult me in front of my own men and get away with it."

"You started it!" Luffy yelled defiantly. "You mountain ape!"

"Nice one," Zoro said lightly. "I guess he was better at insults back then… but he can't do much like that."

"How can you say something like that?!" Usopp yelled him, "Don't you know what'll happen to Luffy?"

"That's easy," Zoro answered while his eye on the bandit's sword "He'll die."

"That's a horrible thing to say! Luffy could get sliced into pieces here and you're standing there all calm!" Nami yelled at him.

"And us getting upset will make a heck of a difference won't it?" he asked, and they stopped yelling for him to say, "Whether we like it or not isn't the point. What is the point is that this is all ancient history."

"Besides," Robin answered as she looked at the bandit's irritated face, "Luffy obviously survives. Let's just watch and see…"

"Fine," the bandit, stomping harder on him one more time before he drew his sword, now looking annoyed, "I've decided that I'm not gonna sell you. I'll kill you instead."

Zoro flicked his thumb so his blade could be seen; though he knew that it was pointless, he couldn't help himself—they had all become increasingly protective of Luffy—especially after these last two years. The others were looking angry as well, some of them even drawing weapons—just aching for a chance to have a go at this jerk.

"LUFFY!" Makino screamed in panic.

"Please!" the Mayor cried out imploringly as he looked up, "Let him go! He's just a child!"

"I was wondering why the bar was empty on such a fine day," a causal voice from behind them. They all spun around in time to see Shanks and his crew standing behind Makino and the Mayor.

"So this is why," Shanks finished, looking at them all.

"Captain Shanks!" Makino called out in relief.

"Oh good!" Chopper cried out happily. "Shanks will take care of everything."

"I hope so," Brook said softly as they looked back to the helpless Luffy, still fighting to get up.

Shanks grinned brightly as he came forward. "If it isn't the bandits from the other day," he said before turning his teasing grin on Luffy, "What's the matter, Luffy? I thought you said that you have a punch like a pistol?"

"Shut up!" Luffy snarled from where he was.

"I have to agree, now's not the time," Franky said, posing. "It's time to SUPER kick some ass!"

"Pirate," the leader said smugly, "Why are you still here? I suggest you leave and continue cleaning if you don't want to get hurt."

However, Shanks instead began to slowly walk forward towards them, the Straw Hats moving out of the way for him—despite the fact that there was no need.

The bandit leader pointed his sword at him, "I don't know why you're here, but leave before we kill you."

"I'd love to see him try," Franky laughed. "Shanks didn't become an Emperor for being weak after all!"

But Shanks kept walking towards them. Suddenly, another one of the bandits said with a cocky grin, "Didn't you just hear what he said?" he raised a gun and pointed it straight at Shanks's head. "Don't take another step or I'll blow your brains out."

He cocked the gun, and the other bandits laughed. Shanks did stop here, but he didn't look worried. He was still smiling as if this was all his idea.

"Since you drew your pistol I assume that you're willing to use it?" Shanks asked casually.

"Huh?" the bandit asked stupidly. "What are talking about?"

"I mean are you willing to risk your life?" Shanks asked calmly pointing to the gun in his face, "These aren't toys to scare people with after all, you know?"

Nami, Zoro and Usopp all smirked at those words.

"Oi, what the hell is so funny?" Franky asked them, wondering just what was so funny at this moment.

"Yeah, fill us in on the joke," Sanji agreed.

"When we first met Usopp, Luffy intimidated him with that same speech," said Zoro grinning. "He showed up at the shore and pulled out his slingshot and was about to shoot. Just those words were enough to scare him shitless."

"Yeah…" Usopp laughed. "Hey!" he added when he realized what he said. "You jerk!"

"It is the truth, Usopp," Nami laughed a little until a gunshot rang through the air, bringing them all back to the matter at hand. When they looked up, the bandit with the gun was on the ground while the fat pirate named Lucky Roo was now standing there with the smoking gun—still eating a slab of meat on his knife. Everyone was staring at him in shock and surprise.

"You killed him!" a bandit yelled.

"That was fighting dirty!" another cried out.

"Dirty?" a tall man with slick, black hair tied in a ponytail and carrying a long rifle that was tucked into his yellow sash. "Who did you think you were dealing with here? We never claimed to be Saints."

"I think I like this guy," Zoro smirked.

"That's Benn Beckman," Robin answered. "If I heard right, then he's the first mate of the Red Hair Pirates."

"In other words, he's badass," Sanji said grinning.

"We're pirates," Shanks proclaimed proudly.

"Shut up!" the bandit leader yelled, "This is none of your business!"

The good-natured look on Shank's face just seemed to melt off to be replaced with great anger. "Listen up, bandits," he said in warning. "You can spill food me. You can pour drinks on me. Hell, you can even spit at me. I'll just laugh it off." But then his face grew furious as he said, "But… no matter what the reasons… I WON'T FORGIVE THOSE WHO HURT MY FRIENDS! Now for the last time, let the lad go!"

"Shanks…" Luffy whispered softly.

"WOW!" Chopper cried out, stars sparkling in his innocent eyes. "Shanks is so cool! I want to meet him!"

"I can see why Luffy looks up to him," Sanji smirked. "Shanks is definitely his main influence."

But just then, the leader of the bandits laughed horribly as he asked, "Won't forgive you say? You bunch of pirates who float around on the sea want to challenge bandits?! What a joke! Kill them all men!"

And like that, the bandits all raised their weapons and charged ahead.

"Amateurs," Zoro said shaking his head. "They barely know how to use those things."

"I'll handle this," Benn said coming forward. "I'm more than enough for them."

Shanks just smiled at him as his friend strode forward, pulling out the rifle he had tucked in the sash at his waist, stance relaxed and casual. When the first bandit came at him, he pulled out his cigarette and used it to stab him in the face. That first bandit was down before the cigarette was. He then raised his rifle up as a weapon and in no time at all, the bandits were all lying face-down in the dirt.

"Don't flatter yourselves, bandits," he told them, pointing the rifle at them as he lit another cigarette, "If you want to fight us, you better bring a warship with you."

"Wow…" Luffy whispered in awe.

"Luffy took the words out of my mouth," Nami smiled.

"Not bad… though they were just taking out these weaklings," Zoro added, his hand on his swords again as he watched Benn walk back to his friends. He liked this guy… if they ever met up in the future, he wanted to be the one who fought him.

Staring at his defeated men, the bandit wasn't acting so cool anymore. In fact, he grew pale and was now backing away, "Ah! Wait a minute! The kid's the one who started this!"

Shanks smirked. "Aren't you a wanted man?" he taunted him.

"He's so cool!" Usopp and Chopper yelled out.

Franky burst out laughing. "Yow! I really like these guys."

Robin chuckled. "They are something else aren't they?"

Looking desperate, the bandit threw something down on the ground; they didn't have long to wonder what it was for as soon as it hit the ground, it exploded to created a giant cloud of smoke.

"And they say that pirates fight dirty," Sanji said in disgust.

"A smoke bomb?!" they heard Shanks yell out.

"Come on kid!" the bandit's voice rang out along with Luffy's protests.

"Luffy!" Shanks called out.

"I can't see anything," Brook said as the smoke got thicker and darker, "Ah! But I don't have eyes to see with anyway. Yohohoho!"

"What's happening?" Chopper cried out. But it only continued to get darker until everything faded out.

"I've never seen a smoke bomb make everything this dark," Franky said looking around. "Though that's not such a bad idea for a new weapon," he added to himself.

"Idiot, the memory's obviously changing!" Nami yelled at him. She was right, for soon, they were standing on the ocean waves, everything coming back into focus.

They all stepped backwards in shock at what was happening. Their feet were submerged into the sea, but they were still floating on the unsettled waves as if standing on solid ground.

"Now this is interesting," Robin said with bright curiosity as Usopp, Chopper, and Brook all screamed out in terror. "You don't see this every day."

"How is this possible?" Nami gasped.

"How is any of this possible?" Zoro asked as Chopper clung to his leg, as if terrified that he would fall into the water if he let go.

"WE'RE STANDING ON THE OCEAN!" Usopp screamed as Brook ran around in a panic. "THAT DOES IT! NOW I WANNA GO BACK! PLEASE LET'S JUST GET OUT OF HERE!"

"It's not even wet though," Franky said, lifting up his sunglasses so that he could look at his feet. He jumped up and down a few times, but still felt nothing. It's like it's all an illusion…

"Or a mirage," Nami added as everyone else slowly began to calm down.

"Now's not the time! Look at what's happen!" Sanji yelled, pointing ahead. They looked up to see that the bandit leader was standing in a small row boat with Luffy sitting as far away as possible from him at the other end.

"That's not good," Robin said, now sounding anxious. "If he falls in, he'll die for sure."

"How can you be so calm about this?!" Usopp yelled at her.

"I'm calm about most things," she said coolly.

"But she's right!" Nami called out, gripping the sides of her face in fear. "Luffy can't swim!"

The bandit laughed darkly. "We got away," he said smiling evilly at Luffy. "They will never think to look for a bandit at sea. I only brought you as a hostage, but now there's no more use for you. I've always killed those who irritated me… you will be the 57th."

"You jerk!" Chopper yelled out furiously, transforming into Horn Point. "Wait, till I get hold of you! You'll wish that you were never born!"

"Chopper," Zoro growled. "There's no point in yelling." But he too was looking angry, as if he wanted to kill this man as well.

"Not if you die first!" Luffy yelled at him. The bandit chuckled, smirking as he walked over and kicked him into the sea, laughing out, "Good riddance!"

"Luffy!" Usopp yelled in panic.

They watched as Luffy flew through the air, as if in slow motion, before he hit the water. He ended up coming back up for a moment, but he was floundering in the sea, trying desperately to keep his head above water.

The bandit laughed out loud, as if he couldn't think of anything funnier than watching the boy in front of him drowning. But what he didn't noticed was the dark shape that swam underneath the boat.

"W-What's that?" Nami croaked out, watching the dark shape beneath the waves.

"I think we're about to find out," Franky said as the bandit finally stopped laughing as the water behind him rose up.

Usopp, Nami, Chopper, and Brook all yelled out in panic as a Sea King rose up—looking like a large oversized brown eel with glowing red eyes and blue fins.

"WHERE DID THAT THING COME FROM?" Usopp bellowed out in terror.

"WHAT?!" the bandit screamed out as he stared at it in horror. "WHAT IS THIS MONSTER?!"

"You can tell that he's never been out to sea if he doesn't even know what a Sea King is," Sanji said, but he wasn't smiling this time, wondering what on earth was about to happen next. Just then, the Sea King opened its mouth wide as it closed its jaws around the boat, swallowing the bandit whole.

"Now that's what I call 'just desserts'," Robin whispered.

"Can't you be a little more worried?!" Usopp yelled at her.

"Where did a Sea King come from?" Nami screamed out, "They're hardly ever seen outside the Grand Line or the Calm Belts?!"

"Who cares?" Brook screamed, now freaking out. "Luffy-san is going to be eaten!"

Zoro and Sanji both leapt out, trying to attack the beast, but like every other time, they simply passed right through.

"SHIT!" Sanji screamed out, looking back at the creature. There wasn't anything they could do… all they _could_ do was watch as the Sea King finally noticed Luffy who was now sinking. The Sea King paused, red eyes watching him before it charged.

Luffy's terrified scream broke through the air

"LUFFY!" they all screamed in terror. They heard Luffy's screams, saw the flash of razor sharp fangs as the Sea King dove. For a moment, they feared the worst—forgetting that their captain was still alive—they couldn't see Luffy anywhere and there was blood in the water.

But then, a head with bright, red hair broke through the surface with Luffy clinging to his chest.

"IT'S SHANKS!" Chopper yelled out as the two struggled in the water as the Sea King turned around, ready for another attack. But as it charged towards them again, Shanks looked up and glared hard… making it stop dead in its tracks.

"Get lost," Shanks said, his voice as cold as ice. The Sea King stared for a moment before it quickly dove beneath the waves and disappeared.

"Was that…?" Usopp whispered with in a croak, sweet falling from his face.

"Conqueror's Haki," Robin said calmly. "So he does have it."

"That was amazing!" Chopper said, thinking back to Fishman Island when Luffy did that to the giant Sea Bear. "That was just like what Luffy did before!"

Luffy looked up at Shanks, tears gathering in his eyes. "S-Shanks…"

"Thanks, Luffy," Shanks said with a big grin, "Makino told us what happened. Thanks for sticking up for us." Shanks paused as Luffy started crying noisy tears. "Come on, there's no need to cry—you're a man now."

Usopp was breathing hard before he gasped out, his hand over his heart as he started to breath normally again. "They're ok! They're both ok!"

"I wouldn't say that," Zoro said, gazing hard at Shanks, filled with a new kind of respect. "Take a good look at Shanks."

"B-But… Shanks… your arm!" Luffy cried, tears overflowing, "YOUR ARM!"

The rest of the Straw Hats finally noticed where all the blood in the water had come from. Shanks's entire left arm was gone, all that was left was a bloody stump just past the elbow.

Nami's gasped as she stared at the blood flowing out and Luffy clinging to Shanks's shirt. "His arm…?" she whispered. "He just… just like that…?" They all knew that Shanks had somehow lost his arm from when they met Rayleigh, but seeing how it happened and why…

"I can't imagine what must be going through Luffy's head right now," Usopp whispered, staring at him as he continued to cry.

"I think mostly guilt," Sanji said at once. He knew what it felt like to see someone give up a limb for you. The memory of seeing Zeff bone thin with that messing leg suddenly came to his mind.

"Like it's your fault…" Nami whispered, tears in her eyes at the thought of Bellemere smiling even as Arlong pointed the gun at her.

"And no matter what happens, you don't think you can ever make up for it," Franky finished, thinking of how Tom was taken away from them because of him and his stupid battle ships.

If Shanks was in any pain, he ignored it as he gave him a gentle smile as Luffy clung tighter to him. "Luffy… it's just an arm. I've got another one. I'm just glad that you're alright."

"I never knew what a great man he is," Usopp said in awe as they watched Shanks swim both of them back to shore. He couldn't stop the pride he felt for his father for sailing around the world with a man like him. "I knew he was a strong pirate… but now I know that he's a great man as well!"

"He needs to be treated," Chopper cried in alarm, watching the trail of blood. "He'll bleed to death in less than ten minutes if he doesn't see a doctor!"

"He'll be fine," Zoro said. But there was a strange look in his one eye as he watched them near the shore where his crew was waiting for him. "But I have to say… he's something else."

It became dark again as the vision faded, but soon it reappeared. They were at the docks now with the Red-Haired pirates were just loading up crates of food and barrels of sake onto the ship. Usopp was staring ahead at the back of his father's head before he noticed that Luffy and Shanks were there, watching them work—with Shanks now having his missing arm covered up with a black cloak.

"So you're leaving for good this time?" Luffy asked as Makino, the Mayor, and the other townsfolk came to say goodbye.

"Yep," Shanks said brightly, tilting the straw hat back so that he could see the waves better. "It's been a nice extended vacation, but we've stayed long enough. It's about time that we move on." He looked at him and asked, "Sad to see us go?"

"Yeah…" Luffy confessed, but he kept smiling. "But I made up my mind. I'm not going to ask you to take me with you. I decide that I'm gonna become a pirate all on my own."

Shanks then stuck his tongue out at him and teased, "Heh, I wouldn't take you even if you begged me! You don't have what it takes to be a pirate!"

"For someone who lost an arm, he's surprisingly upbeat," Robin commented.

Luffy blinked before his eyes narrowed in anger and yelled out, "YES I DO!"

At his voice, all of the other pirates on the dock turned to watch Luffy. "One day I'll have a stronger crew than yours! And then I'll find the world's greatest treasure! You hear me? Someday I'm gonna be KING OF THE PIRATES!"

"So that's why he's so obsessed with becoming the king," Zoro said with a smile.

"Yohohohoho! Luffy-san is very determined!" Brook said happily.

"And he's been keeping this promise all these years just because he was angry at Shanks?" Nami asked, shaking her head. "Why doesn't this surprise me?"

"Oh, I don't think that he was really angry, Nami-swan," Sanji said, pulling his cigarette out of his mouth and blowing smoke rings.

"I agree," Robin nodded. "I think that there's more to it than a promise. I can't help but wonder what else it is that drives Luffy."

Shanks listened to Luffy's proclamation before he smiled, as if he was taking this as a challenge. "Oh?" he teased. "So you're going to get a crew that's better than all of us? Well then," and slowly, he reached up to the straw hat and took it off so that he could place it onto Luffy's. "This hat is my gift to you."

Luffy stood still as a statue as Shanks said to him quietly, "This hat is an important treasure to me, so you have to promise me that you'll return it in good condition." Shanks pulled away. "And only after you become a great pirate. That'll be our promise, Luffy."

Chopper laughed joyfully. "Shanks is really nice! So that's why the hat's so important to Luffy!"

"Yes, the man who once saved his life has been waiting for him out here on the sea for years!" Brook said, now looking deeply touched by what he was seeing. "It simply touches my heart! Not that I have one! Yohohoho!"

"He's SUUUUUUPER!" Franky exclaimed, tears running down his face at the cute scene playing out in front of them. "A more kind-hearted man you'll never find anywhere."

"Luffy is very lucky indeed," Robin said with a soft smile.

Nami sighed wistfully. "He is," she agreed. Luffy took the hat in his hands as he watched the Shanks board the ship. Makino came up behind him and stood with him, smiling as kindly as ever as she looked up to the crew and waved goodbye.

"Raise anchor!" Shanks yelled. "And set the sail!"

"Aye!" the rest of the crew yelled before they looked back and waved goodbye to everyone. All the Straw Hats, except for Usopp—who was staring at his father—was looking at Shanks. They watched his ship until it sailed away from them and disappeared over the horizon.

"That's got to be the sweetest thing I've ever seen," Robin smiled as she watched little Luffy put the hat back firmly on his head, and rub the tears away.

"I get it now…" Zoro said softly, his hand on Kuina's sword… remembering the vow that he made to her so long ago.

**(What do you all think? I know that a lot of people have been saying that I should show Garp during his 'kinder' phases, but in the beginning, we didn't see any of that. I wanted to show that... how you can shift from tough, to gentle all in one. I promise you all that he will have his moments later on, but you need to be patient. I got done with this chapter a lot sooner than I thought I would, so even I'm surprised at how quickly it's going up. I hope that you all enjoy this long chapter and next time we get our first introduction to Ace! I hope you all are looking forward to it, and thank you for your support here!)**


	5. Enter Ace and Sabo… the Brothers Meet

**Chapter 5: Enter Ace and Sabo… the Brothers Meet**

"This certainly explains a lot," Robin said softly as it went dark around them once again.

"So that's why the hat means so much to Luffy," Chopper said, his eyes bright. "He treasures it so that he can give it back to Shanks someday."

Franky and Brook were both crying their eyes out as Usopp stood behind them, hiding his own eyes behind his arm to hold back the tears. "A promise between real men!" Franky cried, "No matter how much time passes, they're always working to that one goal!"

"Now they understand that you should keep a promise no matter how hard it is to keep!" Brook cried out. "It's so inspiring! To keep such a promise after all this time!"

"Shanks really is something else," Sanji said, his tone full of respect. "I get it now… so after Luffy becomes the king, he wants to fight Shanks and his crew."

"Something to look forward to," Zoro grinned, resting his hand on his swords. "Now this is a battle I can't wait for."

Just then, the darkness faded away until they were standing in the middle of what appeared to be the forest they had been in when they first arrived.

"This isn't getting old!" Franky called, staring around him. "It's SUUUUPPPPPER, cool!"

"What happens next?" Chopper asked excitedly. "I really want to see more. I don't see Luffy anywhere."

"Take this!" shouted out Luffy's voice through some trees.

"I have a good idea," Nami said, and they poked their heads through the plantlife to see Luffy there face-to-face with a large gorilla that was at least three times bigger than him. Luffy had just jumped up, his arm stretching out as he tried to throw a punch. The gorilla dodged it and Luffy fell to the ground, but he wasn't going to give up that easily. He got right back up and tried again… but yet again he was having trouble aiming his punch just right.

"Well, it seems that the smaller monkeys aren't enough anymore," Robin commented as they watched him jump around and throwing punches.

"Yeah, but he still sucks at fighting," Franky said.

After the gorilla grabbed hold of Luffy's arm and slammed him into the ground, Luffy bounced up again, tilting the straw hat on his head as he threw his arm back shouting out, "GUM GUM…" but then his hand got caught in the tree behind him, and like a bungee cord, he was pulled back and swung rather pathetically from the branch.

Garp, who had been watching the whole thing, sighed, "Stupid kid."

"Yeah, I can't argue with that," Sanji nodded as he exhaled the smoke.

"There's something I need to tell you, grandpa," Luffy said as his grandpa walked up to him, and moved the hat back so that he could see Luffy's face.

"Yeah, what is it?" he asked.

"I decided I'm not gonna be some pirate," Luffy told him.

"Notice how he said 'some pirate'," Robin smiled.

"Oh no…" Usopp said, suddenly filled with dread, "Is he really gonna tell his gramps his dream?"

"Ehhhh! Garp's gonna kill him!" Chopper shouted fearfully.

But at the moment, a big grin appeared on Garps face as he asked, "So you finally came to your senses?"

"Wait for it…" Zoro said, and sure enough…

"Yeah! I'm not gonna become any pirate!" Luffy cried out happily. "I'm gonna be the King of the Pirates!"

"He's dead," Sanji said, shaking his head.

Garp looked furious. "This is that Red Hair's influence!"

He then covered Luffy's face with the hat again before pulling his arm free from the tree.

"Get out of the way you!" he barked at the gorilla, before holding Luffy up, "I've gotta knock some sense into this kid's corrupted mind!"

"Rest in peace, Luffy-san," Brook said, now truly afraid of the fuming look on Garp's face. Luffy's face was frozen in fear as he struggled to free himself.

"I'll never let you become one of their kind!" Garp declared and dropped kicked him. Robin blinked in surprise as the others all winced in pain at Garp's beating.

"Oh, the poor guy," Usopp whispered, hugging his own body close, "I hurt just watching!"

"Ok, now I know that Garp's trying to kill him," Sanji said, watching the whole thing with a rather queasy look on his face.

Sweat was falling from Zoro's face as Franky whispered, "But you gotta admit, even as a kid, Luffy could take punishment."

But Robin didn't say a word as she examined the nervousness in Garp's eyes, even long after the image faded from them. He certainly knew more than they gave him credit for. She could understand now…

The scenery reappeared, and they saw that they were all still in the forest, but now there was Garp who was carrying Luffy piggy back down a hill. The sun setting in the distance—casting everything in a warm, golden glow as they passed the trees, obviously heading back to the village.

"I'm surprised that Luffy's lived passed the age of eight for dealing with a grandpa like that," Nami whispered as they watched Garp slowly approach them.

"Yeah, it looks like he'd been in another brutal training session," Sanji added as they moved away so that Garp could pass—they could all see that Luffy had a thick bandage on his forehead and a clogged up bloody nose as he stared to doze off. His stomach was roaring with hunger as Garp looked at him. Luffy blinked with sleepy eyes as Garp smiled.

"Even after tiring yourself out and falling asleep your stomach is still as active as it always is!" he proclaimed.

"Yeah, don't we all know it," Sanji nodded, remembering back to after they got back from Enies Lobby and how Luffy had worked on a technique to eat while asleep.

Garp shook his head softly and went on, "You probably hate me for being such a strict granddad."

"Strict?" Usopp repeated in a whisper, "More like murder attempts."

"Enough," Robin said softly, watching the grim expression on Garp's face.

"What's wrong, Robin?" Chopper asked as Robin kept looking. She didn't say a word as she followed them, now wishing that she knew what was going on inside Garp's head.

Just then, Garp muttered, "But Luffy… the reason I put you through this harsh training… and want you to be a Marine, is because I don't want you to go down the wrong path. That is my wish."

That was enough to cause them all to stop and think about what he said—all of them rather taken aback. Garp didn't seem to be the type of person who you could talk to in a serious manner. He was one of those people who didn't know the meaning of the word 'tact'. But his words seemed to be so sincere…

"His wish is that Luffy becomes a Marine?" Chopper whispered.

"Makes sense," Sanji said, his hands in his pockets. "After all, what grandfather in his right mind would want their grandson to become a criminal?"

"Even if that's his wish, that's not Luffy's dream," Zoro reminded them. "Garp can beat his face into the dirt all he wants to, but that won't change anything."

"In more ways than one," Robin whispered and they all looked at her as she explained, "No matter how much Garp wants it, the fact is that Luffy _is_ the son of the most wanted criminal in the world. He could never be a Marine even if he wanted to be."

"So he doesn't want Luffy to become like those other bad pirates?" Chopper asked.

"I don't think we need to worry," Robin smiled. "Luffy may be a handful, but he'd never become corrupted… at least that's what I believe."

"I think we all agree on that," Usopp smiled in agreement.

Garp was staring up at the darkening sky before he sighed and hoisted Luffy up a little higher on his back. "Oi, Luffy," he said as he continued down the hill, "I have a treat for you today! The Navy left us plenty of food! You can eat as much as your favorite meat as you want!"

He then burst out laughing as Luffy's tiny hand gripped his shirt a little tighter.

"Isn't that cute?" Robin smiled, watching the two heading back down the hill.

"Ok, I get that Garp has good intentions," Nami whispered as she watched the image fade away, "But I don't think he's going about it the right way."

"I just think that he's not someone who's good with his words, nor do I think he's someone who can express it in a gentle way," Robin whispered as the image reappeared. "He does what he thinks is right… but I have a feeling that he has a much softer side than we give him credit for."

"Where are we now anyway?" Usopp asked, looking around at the trees. "This place looks a lot bigger than the forest we were in before. Suddenly, they heard a loud cry of pain coming from the trees behind them. When they turned they could clearly hear Luffy's voice shouting out, "Grandpa I already told you! I'm gonna be King of the pirates!"

"I guess that Luffy's still brave enough to say that to his gramps," Sanji muttered with a shake of the head. "Does he want to get killed here?"

Just then Garp appeared through the trees, an irritable look on his face as he dragged Luffy along with him by pinching his cheek while Luffy tried desperately to break his grandfather's grip. His rubber body was bouncing along as he slapped at his grandpa's leg to get away.

"What do you mean, 'Pirate King'?!" Garp bellowed, holding Luffy up a little bit higher.

"I think he means the King of all pirates," Franky explained happily.

"I guess that his gentle side has long since faded," Nami asked with a little sweatdrop. "I guess it was a while since that last memory."

"Lemme go!" Luffy yelled, continuing to fight.

Garp ignored him as he went on, "Not only do you eat a Devil Fruit, but now you're spouting nonsense as well! Luffy, both you and Ace are destined to become great marines!"

"Not in a million years," Usopp laughed at the thought. "If he did join, I think that they would be more afraid of him than any pirate."

"Yeah, I still don't know what Garp was thinking," Nami agreed with a big smile as they all trooped behind them. "Luffy? A marine? I can't picture seeing him in one of those tacky uniforms can any of you?"

"Nope," they all said at the same time before laughing with her.

"Damnit," Luffy whined as he continued to struggle, "I'm made of rubber, why does it hurt?! Lemme go, Gramps!"

"Now that's a little harsh," Brook said, "Using Haki like that…"

"Well, there's not much that can get Luffy to behave," Nami sighed.

"Leaving you in that peaceful village was a mistake," Garp said as they walked along a fallen tree, that was acting as a bridge, over a small river. "Of all things, the Pirate King?!"

"Yes!" Luffy cried out without any hesitation in his tone.

"Doesn't he know when to keep his mouth shut?" Zoro asked tiredly.

"You imbecile!" Garp exclaimed, pinching his face harder just as Luffy reached out and grabbed one of the passing trees and wrapped his rubber arms all the way around the trunk as Garp walked on without any idea to what was happening. "Becoming friends with that damn Red-Hair Shanks is completely unacceptable!"

"Grap's going to regret that if he doesn't let go," Zoro said, seeing Luffy's body stretching out, as Garp kept walking along.

"I'm gonna become…" Luffy started, refusing to let go of the tree and ended up uprooting it and slamming it the back of Garp's head, finally causing him to let go, "as strong as Shanks!" Luffy finished stubbornly, still hanging onto the tree like a monkey even after it had been snapped in two after hitting his grandfather.

"Hey!" Garp yelled at him furiously.

"Well, it's his own fault," Usopp laughed as they watched him drag Luffy with him again, arguing all the way.

"You'll be living here with Dadan and the boys until you and Ace become strong Marines," Garp went on with Luffy walking beside him.

"Dadan?" Luffy repeated grumpily.

"That's right," Garp answered, and they could all tell from his tone that this was decided and no amount of whining or complaining was going to change it. "From now on, this is where you'll be living."

"Huh?" Luffy asked predictably, moving around to stand in front of him. He looked ready to complain, but Garp never gave him a chance.

"You're going to be living with these guys," he decided again. "Try to get along with them!" and like that, he punched him hard on the head.

"Yohoho," Brook laughed merrily. "I think I now see a resemblance between them."

"Yeah," Nami answered him with a sigh, rubbing her hand through her bangs. "I guess that this is a family trait. Apparently it's normal for them to want something and to just go for it… and that's the end of it."

As most of them watched the two argue, Zoro saw a flash of something moving in the trees. When he looked up however, there wasn't anything there… But at the same time, he noticed how the branches were swaying softly as if they had been touched by something just a second ago.

"Saw that too?" Sanji asked him quietly, able to speak with him without anyone noticing as Luffy kept yelling in a loud voice.

Zoro nodded, his eye never leaving the tree until the branches became still once again. "Someone was there…"

"Didn't get to see who it was though," Sanji went on as they quickly caught up with the rest of the group.

Just then they heard Luffy ask, "Granddad, who's Ace?"

They all froze at those words, the atmosphere suddenly becoming so much tenser.

"He doesn't know Ace yet?" Chopper asked quietly.

"This must be where they first… met…" Nami whispered, now wishing more than ever that they were out of this place. It was hard enough to hear about Ace's death in the newspaper, but to actually see how they first met…? She didn't want to see it…

"Starting today, he's going to be your big brother," Garp answered, but his tone had become a little more gentle if only for a moment before they set off again. A few minutes later, they reached a small house in the middle of a large clearing. A decent size place with a watchtower in the back with a line of clothing hung to the nearest tree—it looked like a handful of people lived there…

"What a dump," Sanji stated, looking around. "I don't know, he's really going to be living in a place like this? It looks more like somewhere where a gang of bandits live."

"You got that right," Franky admitted, moving his sunglasses up again so that he could get a better look at it himself.

Luffy stared up at it in bright curiosity before he went running around to get a better look at it. As he started to explore, Garp walked on ahead and banged on the door.

The front door opened and they were all taken aback when it was a woman who answered it. But not just any woman… a rather tall and overweight woman with long, orange, curly hair and a big, masculine face—there was cigarette held between her lips as she had thrown open the door, yelling out, "So annoying! Who's the reckless daredevil?!"

"It's me," Garp answered darkly.

At his voice, the woman's eyes snapped open and she backed away in fear, stammering, "G-Garp-san!"

"Now that would be an unpleasant surprise," Nami whispered, imagining opening the door to see that standing there.

At his name, two men appeared right behind her. The shorter of them was hardly taller than Luffy and was wearing polka-dotted dungarees and a tight turban on his head while carrying a dictionary in his hand. The taller man was… there was no other way to say it, but his overall appearance looked like a chicken. He had what appeared to be a wattle on his chin, and a comb on his bald head.

All of them were looking terrified at the sight of Garp, and were now actually retreating a little.

"Is this a circus or something?" Franky asked, "Who're these freaks?"

"I can't say for sure," Robin stated. "But it's most likely that these are that _'Dadan and her boys'_ that Garp mentioned."

"What? He's leaving Luffy with these guys?" Zoro asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yohoho! So these are the ones who raised Luffy-san?!" Brook exclaimed cheerfully.

"If that's true, then it would explain a lot," Sanji said with a laugh.

"Apparently," Nami said slowly, eyeing the woman, who she assumed to be Dadan, with suspicion. "But why here?"

"I wish that it was Makino," Chopper sighed sadly, sitting down as he watched. "She's really nice. I liked her."

"I think that's what the problem was for Garp," Zoro said, jerking his thumb to Garp.

Just then, Garp said conversationally, "You seem to be doing well."

"You gotta be kidding me!" Dadan called out just as Luffy began running around them, looking at everything with bright eyes. "I wish you'd just leave me alone for a change! That Ace is already ten years old you know!"

That got their attention.

"Ohhh!" Chopper called out excitedly, "So this _is_ where Ace lives!"

"YOW!" Franky called, striking his pose joyfully. "We get to met Luffy's older brother!"

"Yeah!" Usopp cried happily, tears appearing in his eyes again. "So we get to see how such devoted brothers met."

"It would be nice to see him again, even as a kid," Nami laughed, smiling brightly.

"You met Luffy-san's brother before?" Brook asked them in surprise.

"Yeah," Sanji said, removing his cigarette for a second. "Back in Alabasta… but that was a long time ago…"

"Yeah! It was just before you joined up with us, Robin!" Chopper added and Robin smiled.

Garp chuckled at that and asked, "Is he? Has it really been that long already? How's he doing?"

"It's nothing to laugh at," the short man called out as Garp began to laugh. "If he gets any wilder, we won't be able to control him at all! Just take him with you!"

"Ace? Wild?" Nami asked in surprise. _'But he was so nice when we met him…?'_

"Anyway," Garp began but the little guy interrupted annoyed, "Don't change the subject like that!"

"I agree," Sanji sighed, "Apparently that's another bad habit that Luffy inherited from his grandpa."

Dadan, who had been watching Luffy run around the whole time, finally lost patience and cried out, "Sheesh! That kid's so annoying!"

"You get used to it," Zoro commented and watched as Garp reached out and grabbed Luffy when he ran by and held him up so that they could see him.

"Take care of him too," he said bluntly.

"Nice way to break it to them," Nami muttered, smacking her forehead, as the other three stared at Garp with speechless expressions—as if they thought he had to be kidding around. "What an idiot…"

The three of them stared at him before Garp scolded Luffy, "Now come on, Luffy, say hello."

"Yo!" Luffy said at once, holding up a hand to greet them.

The man who looked like a chicken looked from around Dadan and asked, "Who's that kid?"

"He's my grandson," Garp stated simply.

They stood there with their jaws falling open in horror. For a moment they seemed too stunned to speak before they cried out, "WHAT!?"

"Well, you can tell from their expressions that they're taking the news well," Robin chuckled.

The little man screamed out, "We gotta take care of _another_ one?!"

"Garp's – I mean – Garp-san's grandson?!" Dadan repeated.

They all got on their knees and screamed boldly, "Not happening!"

"You can't help but feel bad for them," Sanji said sympathetically. "I mean, we all have problems keeping Luffy out of trouble now… but imagine how he must've been as a kid?"

Garp crossed his arms as Luffy went running around exploring again. "Well," Garp said as he let Luffy back down and he ran around wildly, "you have to make your decision. Do you want to spend the rest of your lives behind bars… or will you raise him?"

"Wait, you're saying that they're criminals?" Nami, Usopp, and Chopper all cried out at the same time, their jaws falling open in surprise.

"I get it," Sanji stated, thinking it over. "They really _are_ bandits and Garp's blackmailing them."

"So, in other words, they have a choice to either take care of Luffy and Ace… or jail," Robin summed up for them all.

Nami fell to the ground, her expression stony as she whispered, "Let me get this straight, Garp wants him and Ace to be Marines, but he's leaving the two of them with a bunch of bandits?"

"It would appear so," Robin said, a twinkle of amusement in her eyes.

"What kind of logic is that?!" she demanded loudly. "It makes no sense! No sense at all!"

"This really does explain a lot," Franky burst out laughing. "But I think Garp decided for them what they're gonna do… they don't have much of a choice here do they?"

Garp was speaking again, "I've turned a blind eye so far. But you've committed as many crimes as here are stars in the sky."

"No way!" the three of them shouted out as Garp laughed.

The chicken man scratched his head and began, "Well, true, I don't wanna go to prison."

The short man then finished voicing his opinion, "But sometimes prison actually seems tempting. Our hands are full with just Ace!"

"Jail or raise Luffy and Ace?" Usopp said slowly, holding his hands up as if he was a scale as if to decide which he would rather do. "Yeah, I think I can understand."

"Well, maybe not Ace…" Chopper said, thinking back to that loving, kind older brother. "He was so nice…"

"I wouldn't bet on that," Franky disagreed at once, frowning a little at the looks on the bandit's faces. "I never met him like some of you, but even I know that just because you're one way as an adult, doesn't mean that you were the same way as a kid."

"Well, how different could he be?" Nami asked.

Dadan suddenly cried out, "And now you want us to take your grandson too?! I'm sure that kid's just as much of a monster, isn't he?!"

"That's about it," Usopp and Nami both said at the same time.

But Chopper tilted his head in confusion. Monster? What did they mean? Ace was a monster?

"What a crappy looking mountain hut," Luffy said bluntly, and Usopp laughed.

"As blunt as ever I see," Nami sighed fondly. "I see that hasn't changed since he was a kid."

Dadan had heard him and yelled out, "You want to die, you brat?!"

Too bad for her a couple dragonflies buzzed passed and Luffy was completely distracted as he went running after them

"He's not listening!" Dadan cried out, falling forward.

"Boss, are you alright?" the little man asked.

"Jeez, this is a rough place," Sanji said, running a hand through his hair. "And Luffy grew up here?"

As they talked, they heard Luffy's voice suddenly yelling out, sounding angry, "Hey! You! Apologize! That's gross!"

Garp turned at Luffy's yell. "Oh! Ace!" he said with a grin as he began to walk over to them.

"Oh! You're back, Ace!" the chicken man called out. The Straw Hats all looked at once, eager to see Ace again… but they stared at what they saw…

A young boy, looking no older than ten or eleven years old was sitting on the dead body of animal. Familiar black hair and stretch of freckles were splashed across his cheeks and nose… his body was rigid as he looked down at Luffy with his arms folded and holding a long metal pole.

But it was his eyes that sent chills up their spines. His eyes were dark and cold and filled with an anger that seemed so deep that it was beyond rage… hatred.

The Straw Hats stared. Nami walked forward and croaked out, "That's… that's Ace?"

"He looks really scary," Chopper said, ducking behind Zoro.

"That's Luffy-san's older brother?" Brook asked in surprised. "Not what I was expecting…"

"No way!" Usopp said at once, pointing wildly at him. "That can't be… he's nothing like the guy we met!" The Ace that had met back in Alabasta was cheerful and he and his brother were the best of friends. This boy, though… anger seemed to radiate off of him. "It has to be someone else!"

"Really?" Chopper called out in relief.

"Of course it's him you idiot," Sanji snapped at him, slapping him. "Who else would it be?"

"Hey!" Luffy called up again, "Apologize!"

Ace just glared down at him coldly as if daring him to take another step forward.

Garp's heavy footsteps were sounded and they turned to see him standing next to Luffy and saying, "Luffy, that's Ace." He smiled up at Ace and finished, "He's three years older than you. Starting today, you're going to be living with these people, so you better get along, got it?"

"Ehhhhhh?!" called a loud voice from behind them and they saw Dadan get back up to her feet. Seeing this cold Ace made them all forget about her.

"You just decided by yourself?!" she demanded.

"I don't think that you have much say in the matter," Nami said knowingly.

Luffy and Ace continued to glare silently at each other—looking as if they were about to attack until Garp pounded Luffy on the head and said harshly, "Try to get along!"

But the other three didn't seem to be willing to give up without a fight for Dadan yelled out, "You think it's settled?!"

He turned and gave them the evil eye. "You have a problem?" he asked menacingly.

A look of pure terror came across their faces and then they stood up straight and all recited, "We'll take care of him!"

"Like he would've taken no for an answer," Franky said.

"My business here is done then!" Garp said as they looked back to Ace's cold features. "I'll come to visit when I have the time!"

"Ummm… what about child support?!" the chicken man called after him.

"Put it on my tab!" Garp called.

"This isn't a bar you know!" Dadan screamed at him.

"Huh?"

"Welcome anytime!" she yelled out, sweat pouring down her face.

"He sure seems to have them well trained," Zoro answered, watching Garp's retreating back.

"I don't get it," Nami said with a frown and folded her arms. "Just what was he thinking? Leaving his grandchildren here of all places? And with a family of mountain bandits to boot! Just what was he thinking?"

But Robin was thinking it all over… to her… it actually made sense to leave them here.

But before she could voice her own opinion, the other two bandits were asking Dadan, "Hey, Boss, what are we going to with another one to take care of?"

"Well, first let's go have something to eat!" she said sourly. "Go cook something up!"

"Looks like we just learned where Luffy got his idea that eating a meal solves everything," Sanji said as he watched with the others as Ace jumped down from his kill and slowly walked towards Luffy. "Apologize!" Luffy yelled at Ace one more time, but predictably, Ace just walked right past him without saying a word. It was clear on his face that he felt it wasn't worth the trouble.

"Does anyone else here feel the temperature drop?" Usopp gulped, as he looked at Ace's cold eyes.

"You aren't the only one who feels that," Franky said shivering.

Luffy fumed and pulled his straw hat down over his head. Then he paused as if thinking something over.

But for the rest of them, they couldn't understand just what happened here. Could this really be the same person they met before in Alabasta? The same person who asked that they take care of his little brother? The same person that Luffy had stormed Impel Down and Marine Headquarters to rescue… how could it have gone from this to that? Here, it looked as if they couldn't stand each other…

"Ace-san does not look very friendly," Brook said worriedly, "He seems so angry…?"

"Are you guys sure it's the same Ace?" Usopp asked, still not convinced.

"How can it be anyone else?" Sanji asked him irritably. "You think that there are two Aces' or something?"

"Let's just see what happens," Zoro said, suddenly realizing what the thing watching from the trees had been. As he watched Luffy wipe off the spit on his face and followed Ace into the house.

They followed Luffy into the house. It appeared to have been deserted as Luffy looked around, most likely looking for Ace. As he wandered around, a knife came out of nowhere and was pointed at Luffy's neck.

"Ahhhh!" Usopp called in panic, "They're gonna kill him!"

Nami punched him in the head shouting, "Would you shut up?!"

"Who the hell are you?" the bandit asked, and they all appeared out of the darkness—a decent amount of them were gathered around them, like guards—prepared to grab him if he escaped.

"Let go of me!" Luffy yelled, staring down at the weapon that seemed to glint a little in the low light.

"If you don't wanna die," the bandit holding the knife at his throat, "Then fork over all your cash!"

"Do they really think that a seven-year-old has cash?" Sanji asked impatiently.

"Luffy-san doesn't have much luck with bandits does he?" Brook asked, thinking about that last one.

"Nope," they all agreed.

"I don't have any money!" Luffy told them honestly.

"Then call your parents and make them bring some!" another bandit demanded at once.

"Kidnapping now?" Nami asked. You really didn't expect Luffy to be kidnapped… more to be like the _kidnapper_…

"I've only got Granddad!" Luffy said.

"Then call your Gramps here!" a third bandit told him. "What's his name?"

"They're in for a nasty surprise," Brook said, thinking of Garp.

"Garp-san," said a familiar voice. The lights suddenly brightened as the door opened and the little man from before was there. The other bandit's eyes opened wide in horror as sweat poured down their faces. "This kid is…?" the bandit holding Luffy croaked out.

"He's gonna live with us from now on," he finished as if speaking a death sentence. That was when every single bandit seemed to come out of the woodworks and cried out in panic.

"Why'd you take him?!"

"This isn't a nursery school you know!"

"Boss, you're totally gutless!"

Dadan then came back in with a giant plate of meat and yelled out, "Shut it, you scumbags!"

"Well, she knows how to control them I'll give her that," Zoro said as they all fell silent at that.

"It's time for dinner!" she added, pointing to all the food. At that, drool came down from the other bandits faces as they launched themselves at the meat. As they watched them devour the meat like a pack of animals, Luffy raced over too, only to get stepped on.

"What a wild place," Franky said, "Almost reminds me of my boys back home at Water 7!" As he said that, he couldn't help but wonder just how they were doing these days…

"You know, now I think I understand why Luffy eats like there's no tomorrow," Nami said as they all sweatdropped, watching them all eat and fight with each other.

"Yeah," Usopp agreed exasperated. "In this house you have to fight just to get fed."

"And if you don't, you go hungry," Zoro finished.

"Yohoho!" Brook said. "How harsh!"

In the end, it was Luffy, Ace and Dadan who were sitting around a fire in the center of the room. Ace was devouring some of the meat he stole earlier, while Dadan sipped some sake. Luffy frowned at the small bowl of rice in his hand.

"Was that all he could get?" Usopp asked with wide eyes. "That's not even a mouthful for a normal person!"

They watched as Luffy tilted the small bowl and swallowed its contents in one go before he yelled out, "I want another bowl!" But when no one else noticed him he said, "Pops, I want another bowl!"

"I'm a woman!" Dadan yelled at him.

Chopper looked confused. "She is?"

"Yeah, I can see where someone might make the mistake," Franky agreed, looking at her up and down.

"And don't you realize where you've been left?!" she barked at Luffy.

"No," was his blunt answer.

"Then I'll tell you," Dadan said as a rather horrid grin appeared on her face.

"She's scaring me," Chopper whispered.

"I think that's the idea," Robin said. "She's trying to scare him."

"This is the hideout of the mountain bandits who rule Mt. Corvo, the Dadan Family!" she said in a dark voicie.

"Mt. Corvo?" Robin said in surprise.

"You've heard of it?" Nami asked her and they all turned to look.

"Only by name," Robin said, frowning a little. "If what I'm thinking of is right, then this is Goa Kingdom on Dawn Island."

"Dawn Island?" Chopper repeated, "So this is where Luffy was born?"

"Like I said, I only know the rumors," Robin said, her hand up and under her chin, meaning that she was deep in thought. "But if I'm right, they say that Goa Kingdom is supposed to be the most beautiful and cleanest kingdom in the entire East Blue."

"What?" Sanji asked startled. "You mean Luffy came from a place like that?"

"You sure don't expect to hear that," Usopp said, his face shone nothing but disbelief as he looked back to the bandits who were still gnawing on the bones of their meals like dogs. "So far, I don't see anything like that though…"

"That's what I know," Robin said, still frowning. "Mt. Corvo is supposed to be part of it. Outside Goa is a forest that is filled with animals of incredible size and ferocity."

"Incredible size and ferocity?" Zoro repeated, "Just what do you mean by that?"

"Mountain bandits? I hate mountain bandits," Luffy said, a dull look passing over his face.

"Can't blame him for that," Usopp said nodding. "I mean, he was almost eaten because of the last one he met."

Dadan responded by sticking a knife into the floor in front of him.

"Shut it, you damn brat!" she yelled at him. "It's already a pain in the ass raising you! If you don't want to be here, that's fine by us! Just go somewhere and die like an animal!"

"She can't be serious about that can she?" Chopper asked them, gulping painfully at the thought.

Zoro narrowed his eyes. "Doesn't sound like it to me."

"Jeez, what was Garp thinking in leaving his grandsons here?" Nami demanded for what felt like the millionth time.

"Now, now, Boss…" the chicken man, who they found out was named Magra, spoke up attempting to calm Dadan down.

"I'm still hungry," Luffy whined, before glancing up at all the meat that Ace was scarfing down and drool was forming on his mouth. "I want some of that meat…"

Dadan then held out a piece of it and Luffy tried to take a bite out of it, only for her to pull it away so that he chomped down on air.

Nami frowned a little, but she couldn't stop thinking how cute Luffy was when he was a little kid.

"I'll have you know that this meat is the meat Ace hunted and brought back!" Dadan told Luffy as she began chowing down on it herself. "He shares it with us and that's why he gets a place at our table! The life of a mountain bandit is harsh! Starting tomorrow, we're going to work you half to death! Cleaning! Laundry! Shoe and weapon polishing! Theft, looting, swindling, and killing! And listen… you're not gonna say a single word to Garp about the stuff we make you do!"

"Why do I get the feeling that's not what happened?" Franky asked while Robin giggled and Brook laughed.

"One bowl of rice and one glass of water a day!" Dadan continued, "That's all I'm giving you. Anything else you'll have to get for yourself. You'll have to raise yourself to be strong," she said with a smug smile, and pausing to see if he would start crying or complaining.

"But that's not really fair is it?" Usopp asked in concern, "I mean, even if it's Luffy, he's still only seven right?"

"Something tells me we don't need to worry," Robin said with a smile.

"Alright," Luffy said, causing Dadan to fall face-first onto the floor.

"Of course he agrees," Nami said dryly.

"You're fine with it?!" Dadan cried startled, "You should be crying by now!"

Luffy didn't look the least bit surprised by anything she said. "Granddad threw me into the jungle once. Earthworms, snakes, frogs, mushrooms… if this is a jungle than I'll be just fine!"

Usopp started turning green at the thought. "Oh, man…" he said looking sick as he held onto his stomach. "How can anyone live on that stuff?"

"Wow, so even back then he had a stomach made of scrap iron," Sanji said impressed.

"No, that's me bro!" Franky said, knocking on his own stomach to hear the pang of metal.

"But mushrooms…?" Usopp repeated shaking his head. He had always hated mushrooms, after having eaten a poisonous once when he was younger.

Robin giggled again as she commented, "Looks like Luffy is already used to taking care of himself."

"If I had a grandfather like Garp, then I guess," Zoro stated dryly.

"Besides," Luffy carried on, "I'm gonna be a pirate someday! So I've gotta deal with at least this much!"

"But pirates don't eat half the things you do," Nami called out.

But at his words, Ace looked over at Luffy for the briefest moment before he stood up and headed to the door. As the other bandits tried to pull Dadan's head out of the floor, Luffy looked up to see Ace just as he walked out.

"Where's he going?" Luffy asked himself before he jumped up and went after him just as Dadan yelled after him, which of course he ignored.

"Hey!" Luffy called just as Ace shut the door behind him, leaving everything in darkness.

"Why do I think this isn't a good idea?" Nami asked, still disturbed by Ace's attitude.

Luffy stopped for a moment, staring blankly at the door in front of him, as if wondering what he should do. Then he shook his head before nodding determinedly and pushing the door open.

"Hey!" Luffy called again, running outside and chasing after Ace, "Wait up! Hey!" Ace finally turned around and glared down at Luffy with those angry looking eyes.

"He's creeping me out now," Usopp whispered quietly. "It feel like he's like he's going to attack him if he gets too close."

But Luffy didn't seem to notice as he waved and called up happily, "I'm Luffy! I'm not angry that you spat at me anymore! It's nothing to get worked up about! Let's be friends!"

"Why does that sound familiar?" Brook asked, tilting his head as he thought it over.

"He's thinking of Shanks," Robin smiled.

"Well, I guess he could've had worse role models," Sanji admitted with a small smile himself.

Ace just stared at Luffy, a blank mask on his face. "Are you going somewhere?" Luffy called.

But instead of answering, he did something that made them all gasp. Ace turned and kicked the tree he was closest to: the first kick broke it as it slowly fell and landed with a crash, the second kick he aimed it towards Luffy so that it went rolling towards him.

"Did he just knock that tree down!" Nami yelled in disbelief.

"YES!" Usopp cried, grabbing his hair in panic, "AND NOW HE'S ROLLING IT TOWARDS US!"

Luffy screamed in panic before he turned and ran as fast as he could down the hill as the tree came barreling towards him. Luffy ran until he came to a giant rock and he screamed out, "A dead end?!"

And with a crash, the tree hit him and he was flattened against tree and stone. They all stood there and watched, trying to wrap their heads around what Ace had just done.

"If it wasn't for his rubber body, Luffy probably would've been killed," Robin observed calmly as she watched Luffy try to pull himself out from under the tree.

"Now is not the point!" Usopp screeched, pointing in the direction that Ace was heading in. "He just tried to kill him without a second thought! There's no way that could be the same Ace we met before!"

"Man, if Luffy had to live with this, no wonder he got strong," Franky said, folding his massive arms. "Just talking to his brother could've gotten him killed."

"He's scaring me," Chopper whispered, looking at Ace's retreating back.

"I wonder what happened to get them to become brothers," Robin asked curiously.

"Well, I'm sure we'll find out if we keep watching," Sanji said, as Luffy pulled himself out and was now gasping for air. Luffy was as stubborn as when he was a child as he was as their captain. Covered in bruises, he went chasing after Ace and onto a rickety old bridge that stretched over a large gorge. Ace was already halfway across by the time that Luffy stepped on.

Realizing that someone else was there, he turned and looked taken-aback to see Luffy there. It quickly vanished though, replaced with an annoyed frown as he turned and began to walk toward Luffy who was gasping for breath.

"Luffy!" Usopp called, "I know you can't hear us! But you really should move back! He doesn't look like he wants to be your friend."

Of course, it made no difference. Luffy straightened up and smiled—obviously thinking that Ace was finally going to talk to him. But the Straw Hats noticed the hand that held the metal pole tightening and he charged forward, striking Luffy hard enough to knock him off the bridge.

Everyone but Zoro cried out in surprise as Luffy flew up into the air and over the bridge… instead, Zoro was staring at the wild look in Ace's eyes… a ten-year-old boy looked as if he were a completely feral animal. Even as he watched Luffy fall, there was nothing but anger in those cold, pitiless eyes.

What he saw disturbed him…

Luffy was falling—screaming the whole way as Ace just stared coldly after him before carrying on his way.

"What the hell was that for?!" Sanji yelled out. "What is his problem? He was just a kid! He wasn't doing anything!"

The rest of the crew had to agree. They couldn't believe that this was Ace, Luffy's kind and polite older brother who had asked them to look after Luffy for him. Chopper, Nami and Usopp seemed to be in some kind of shock.

"Just what is going on here?" Nami cried, gripping her hair in confusion. "A normal person could've died from that! Didn't he know that?!"

Usopp looked over the edge of the gorge and cried out, "EH! There's water down there!"

Robin merely sighed softly as they looked to her and the memory faded around them so that they were in the darkness again. "I don't think he was going to go as far as to try and kill him…"

"Could've fooled me," Zoro said, shocked by what he had seen, "I've seen less obvious murder attempts."

"He really is a monster," Chopper whispered in a scared tone, and shaking at the thought of those cold eyes.

Their vision returned in no time at all, but it was still dark. It wasn't until the moon came out from behind the clouds did they realize that it was nighttime. With the light of a moon overhead, they looked around to see that they were back in front of the bandit's hideout was. Through the shadows of the trees they saw a small figure stumbling through. When he came close enough, they saw it was Luffy… and he looked like he had just gone through hell. Every inch of his body was scratched and bruised; he was also covered in dirt and blood. His clothes were torn, he had several nasty gashes on his chest and shoulders, one of his eyes was bloody and swollen and there was a cut on his forehead that was still bleeding.

"EHHHH!" Chopper yelled, running forward to treat the injuries, only to end up passing through him.

As Luffy got closer to the hut, the white dog that was sleeping outside woke up with a start, and began barking. A few minutes later, the little man called Dogra looked out sleepily to tell the mutt to be quiet. When he saw who it was he yelled out, "Boss! Boss Dadan!"

"Who is…?" Magra asked before he stopped dead as he stared at Luffy like he was a ghost.

"Who's here?" Dadan called, also coming to the door before she yelled in shock. "EH?! It's you!"

"Hey! That Luffy came back alive!" another bandit called out as Luffy stumbled over to them.

"This kid!" Dadan yelled coming over and pulling at Luffy's face. "You're still alive?!"

"He's hurt!" Chopper yelled at her angrily. "Are you even gonna look him over before you ask him questions?!"

"Looks like they could care less," Franky said, shaking his headas Magra tried to calm Dadan down.

"Where the hell did you go?" she demanded.

"Now now," Magra said in a more gentle voice as he turned to Luffy. "Where were you? Where did you go?"

"It's already been a week," Dogra added.

"A whole week?!" Brook yelled out in surprise.

"I guess he just got lost trying to find his way back up the cliff," Zoro said lightly.

"That's rich coming from you," Sanji said in disgust.

"Did you say something you crappy cook?" Zoro growled at him.

"I was chased around by wolves at the bottom of the valley," said Luffy tiredly, his face stretched out.

"Chased by wolves for a whole week?!" squeaked Usopp, his jaw falling open.

"I think he left out some major details," muttered Sanji, looking around for Ace.

"Why doesn't he tell them that Ace knocked him down there?" Chopper asked them.

"Knowing Luffy, he'll have his reasons," Nami asked, her hands on her hips. "But seriously… that Ace really is out of control."

"The bottom of the valley?" Dogra repeated in shock, "Why'd you go there?"

"Well, it's not as if he went down there on purpose," Usopp stated in annoyance. Luffy didn't seem to be able to answer… or rather, he didn't seem to want to answer to that.

"Well, in any case, it's a good thing he's safe," Dogra said to Dadan.

"The hell it is! This just means that the troublemaker had returned!" Dadan shouted annoyed, picking up Luffy by what was left of his shirt as she dragged him off to a small room inside the house. As they looked in, the first thing they saw was Ace sleeping there before she dropped Luffy on the floor next to him.

"I see that he doesn't seem to be having trouble sleeping," Sanji muttered darkly, looking at him. "Makes me wonder if he has a conscience…"

"Go to sleep for now! We're putting you to work tomorrow!" said Dadan before closing the door with a snap. Luffy was so tired, that he shut his eyes and was out at once—and that was the end of the memory as the darkness returned.

"THEY DIDN'T TREAT HIS WOUNDS!" Chopper roared out, taking his heavy point form in anger. "HOW COULD THEY DO THAT? THOSE CUTS LOOK REALLY BAD! AND ATTACKED BY WOLVES? DON'T THEY KNOW JUST HOW SICK HE COULD'VE GOTTEN? WHO KNOWS WHAT HAPPENED TO HIM DOWN IN THAT VALLEY?"

"Oi Chopper! This all happened years ago," Zoro called out loudly. "There's no point in getting upset about it now."

"But they didn't even care that he was ok!" said Chopper, his eyes glazed with angry tears. Zoro didn't say anything, but put his hand on Chopper's shoulder in a comforting gesture as he returned to his usual form.

"Seriously, what was Garp thinking?" Usopp said, smacking his forehead. "What's the point of leaving them in the middle of nowhere with bandits like this?"

"Actually," Robin said slowly. "I can understand why he did it."

"What?" they yelled at her incredulously.

"You mean you agree with this?" Usopp said to her in horror.

"I'm just saying that it makes sense to hide them here," she answered before they all blinked at her in confusion.

"Hide?" Brook asked, you could practically see the question marks above his head. "What do you mean by hide, Robin-san?"

Robin sighed as she explained, "Garp may have a funny way of showing it, but I can tell that he truly cares about Ace and Luffy. That's why he hid them here. Did you forget who their fathers are?"

"You mean Roger and Dragon?" Usopp asked before his eyes widened in realization.

"Exactly," she said as she folded her arms. "The son of the Pirate King and the son of the infamous Revolutionary leader… believe me when I say that the World Government would never have let them live if they knew about their lineage. And they're only kids here… that's why Garp kept this secret. If anyone ever found out about their fathers, then they would be put into a lot of danger. Hiding them out in the middle of nowhere was probably the best thing he could've done."

They let that all sink in and Nami whispered, "I… I guess I can understand… but…"

"Garp may go about it differently," Robin said. "But I agree that keeping the boys as far away from as many people as possible was the best thing to do… especially since they were only children."

Just then, it was bright and sunny out when the memory returned. Luffy came charging out the door with a new shirt and a few bandages on his face as he went chasing after Ace like he did before, calling out to him to wait up and to be friends.

Ace stared back at him before he broke into a run and Luffy went after him; around rocks, under branches, once even underneath a large hole in a tree trunk until they reached a pond that was filled with logs. Ace jumped across the water with the help of some vines that were hanging over it and up some rocks before he finally stopped to watch Luffy catch up.

"Ace!" Luffy called stubbornly from the other side of the water. "Let's be friends!"

He then went to jump onto the logs that were floating in the water, only to find out that they weren't logs at all. Usopp, Nami, Brook, and Chopper yelled as crocodile jaws opened wide and went after him.

"Yo! A-Ace!" Usopp yelled up to him. "Go and get him! He'll be eaten!"

But Ace didn't do anything as he watched and jumped away.

"Why am I not surprised?" Nami sighed exasperatedly. Really, what was she expecting? After seeing how cold-hearted Ace was so far, what made her think that he would suddenly help? Just what the hell is going on here?

All the memories they saw after that were all the same. Luffy would chase after Ace when he left the house with Dadan shouting after him to get back and do chores. Every day he would get farther and farther, but always ended up in dangerous situations when Ace was able to ditch him.

They saw him almost getting eaten by a giant snake, getting knocked off a cliff into a birds nest and then attacked by birds, falling into a raging river filled with fish with sharp teeth before he was rescued by the bandits… and so many other horrible things…

Luffy kept chasing after Ace, but could never catch up. Even so, day after day, rain or shine, he kept desperately chasing after him.

"Doesn't he know when to give up?" Usopp yelled out after seeing Ace throw a beehive at him and Luffy being attacked by the bees. "You think he would've had enough by now."

"Of course not," Franky said shaking his head.

"But why is he doing it?" Nami demanded. "What's the point if he's going to keep getting hurt? I think it's quite clear by now that Ace doesn't want anything to do with Luffy."

"I think I know the reason," Robin said softly.

"What?" she asked in surprise as Robin watched the familiar sadness in Luffy's eyes each time he was forced to return to the bandit's alone.

"If I'm right, then we'll sure to find out soon," she answered. Before they could ask her what she meant, the memory came back and it was raining… Luffy was still running after Ace but quickly lost him again. They were in a much thicker part of the forest, now looking more like a jungle than a forest.

"Damn!" Luffy said, finally stopping and staring around him for a clue as to where Ace went. "I lost him again! Ace sure is good."

"He's persistent, I'll give him that," Franky said, folding his arms, and sitting back down. "Even back then…"

"Why is he praising Ace after all that?" Nami asked.

"Quiet," Zoro said, not moving a muscle, but becoming tense. "Something's there."

"Something big," Sanji agreed, looking over his shoulder.

"Ehhhh?" Usopp called, reaching for his slingshot, only to remember, "Oh, wait… this is a memory… we can't get hurt here."

"What is it?" Franky asked at once, still uneasy.

Instead of answering, they looked to the shadows of the trees as soon as they heard a noise. Luffy heard it to, thinking it was Ace, he turned and yelled, "Ace, is that you?"

Lightning flashed and what they saw made Brook and the 'Weakling Trio' scream out in terror. It was a tiger… but not just any tiger… the biggest tiger any of them had ever seen. Luffy was hardly bigger than one of its claws as the enormous beast lumbered forward; the boy screamed and fell back, too scared to move as it came closer.

"What's up with this forest?!" Usopp yelled out as Chopper screamed in terror, "IT'S NOT NORMAL!"

"I told you," Robin said, watching as calmly as always. "This place is filled with beasts of unnatural size."

Zoro and Sanji saw something move above them and looked up to see Ace crouching by a bush as he watched. This time it was different though… a look of alarm was on his face as he bit down on his thumb… as if wondering what he should do. Zoro raised his eyebrows—did he actually look concerned this time?

"Ok!" Usopp yelled, never looking away from the tiger. "I get the fact that Ace doesn't want anything to do with Luffy! But this is cruel!"

"M-My legs won't…" Luffy croaked out, staring in horror at the tiger, "Listen to me!"

The tiger lunged forward, and Ace had gotten up with the pipe tight in his hand. Zoro and Sanji blinked. Was he…?

But suddenly behind them, they heard another roar and looked up to see a giant bear there with a jagged scar over its eye.

"The tiger was after the bear!" Brook yelled out.

"Now Luffy's in between them!" Chopper screamed out in panic.

"It's alright," Zoro said, watching them. "They don't seem to have noticed him yet." Which was true… Luffy was so small compared to the two giant animals that it's quite possible that they just hadn't seen him yet.

Finally gaining control of his limbs, Luffy was able to get back to his feet and made a run for it as the two giant animals fought each other. Luffy went running through the forest, ended up tripping and laid there gasping for breath.

"It's hard to see him freak out and run for it," Nami whispered.

"Well, he's not as strong as he is now," Robin reminded her with a small smile.

"Ohhhh!" Chopper yelled out in amazement, pointing above Luffy. They looked up in time to see that the rain had stopped and the sun had come out to show a great rainbow above him.

"I wonder if that means something," Sanji asked as Luffy sat up, the fight between those monsters was already forgotten as he laughed.

And it did. The memories they saw next showed him swinging over the crocodile pond, dodging the boulders that Ace knocked down from cliffs, sneaking past the same birds who had once attacked him… his relentless pursuit was doing one thing. It was making him stronger.

From what they learned so far, it had been more than three months since he had come to live with the bandits… but still he kept going.

"I don't know if I should be amazed by his tenacity or afraid of his stubbornness," Nami said as they were now watching Luffy leaning heavily on a walking stick as he walked uphill towards them. Gasping for breath, he looked up at them and broke into a huge smile, as if he could suddenly see them, but he said to himself, "I'm out of the forest!"

Dropping the stick he went running the last few yards and to the top of the hill. When they looked they're eyes widened at what they saw. Through the hazy white mists was junk… not just a hill of it, but a mountain… or rather a mountain _range_ of junk!

"Wow! What's this place?" Luffy asked, saying the question on all their minds.

"It's full of trash," Nami said, looking around, "Where in the world did all this come from?"

"Is this where Ace goes every day?" Chopper asked them, staring at everything.

"Yow!" Franky called out, rubbing his metal hands together with excitement. "What a place! Imagine all the stuff I could build here! It's like I died and went to builder heaven!"

"Hey, look over there!" Sanji yelled out, pointing through the mists. "There's some kind of wall there."

"A wall?" Nami repeated, coming over and straining her eyes to try to see it. As the afternoon sun shone through the fog, it gradually became clear and they could all make out that there was indeed a giant wall standing there. Pass all the mountains of junk there were worn out buildings where people seemed to be living, but there was a giant wall that stood between them and the very tops of colorful roofs.

"I see how it is," Nami said frowning. "That must be were the rich live, and everyone else is cast out here."

Robin frowned as well when she looked up at the wall. "If that's true, I hate to see what the people are like."

"Huh?" Usopp asked. "How come, Robin?"

"You really think that it was these people who built that wall?" she asked, pointing to the people that were all shifting through the garbage. "I'm willing to bet that the ones inside those walls were the ones who did that…"

"But why?" Chopper asked in confusion.

"For any number of reasons," was all she said. But the one most likely was that they didn't want to look at the poor here.

"Don't know why, but looking at that thing is ticking me off," Zoro stated grimly as he turned his attention back to Luffy, who was running down the hill. Calling out for Ace, climbing over the junk, tumbling over rocks, and even getting his head stuck in something once and while.

"Wish I could visit here," Franky claimed, striking a pose. "Imagine all the SUPER things I could make with all this scrap metal!"

As they followed him, they ended passing some of the men around here and they couldn't help but feel anxious. Not for them, but for Luffy… for these guys looked far from friendly. But of course, Luffy didn't seem to notice as he kept looking around for Ace… not looking where he was going.

Just then an old man carrying a sack over his shoulder and a knife with him almost ended up running Luffy over. "Out of my way kid!" he barked at him. But when Luffy didn't move, simply looking up at him in surprise, the man seemed to become irritated and held up the knife. "I said move!" he threatened, "Or I'm gonna…"

"He's gonna what?" Zoro asked dangerously, his eye flashing.

But the man didn't get a chance to finish because over his shoulder someone was shouting, "He went that way!"

"Sounds like this guy took something he wasn't supposed to," Brook said as a panicked look came over the old man's face before he ran off as fast as his legs could carry him. Luffy seemed unfazed as he watched the man run away, merely going back to climbing over the junk, looking for Ace.

"I don't like seeing Ace like this," Chopper said sadly. "He's really mean."

"I still don't get why he won't give up," Usopp said exasperated. "Hasn't he gotten the hint that Ace doesn't want him around?"

"Be patient," Robin said softly. "Let's just watch and see what happens."

Onward Luffy kept searching for Ace until he came to a patch of giant trees… as he stood up the hill of junk they spotted him. Ace was there, carrying a sack under his arm and clearly running somewhere in mind.

Giggling to himself, Luffy jumped down and continued to follow him.

"He just doesn't give up," Brook said happily. "It's kind of encouraging is it not? To keep going even if it seems hopeless."

"That or stupid," Sanji corrected. "There is a fine line between them…"

Off they ran after him, wondering what was going to happen next. "I wonder what Ace is doing!" Usopp gasped as he ran to keep up with Luffy.

"You really think that this is where he comes?" Chopper asked, shifting to Walk Point and letting the girls ride on his back.

"Where else would he go?" Nami asked, tying her long hair back up to keep it out of her face. "We all saw him just a second ago."

Luffy wandered through the trees until he reached a small clearing and they looked up to one of the trees to see that there were two boys there. One of them was undoubtedly Ace; the other however, was a boy they didn't recognize. He looked around ten-years-old with a missing tooth and short curly blond hair. He was dressed mostly in blue, but his most noticeable feature was his large black top hat with a pair of blue goggles wrapped around it.

"…put it away. We can't let anyone else see it," Ace's said to him, moving the large sack in his hands.

"Put what away?" Franky asked.

"It looks like treasure," Zoro said, shielding his eye as he looked up.

"Treasure?!" Nami repeated eagerly.

"Not that it will do us much good since we can't touch anything," Robin reminded her and Nami's hopeful face fell. Currently, they have at least 200,000,000 in their possession, which is the value of the treasure they got from Thriller Bark.

"Don't worry, Nami-swaaan!" Sanji said with hearts back for eyes. "You are my greatest treasure!"

"SHUT UP!" Nami yelled at him.

Usopp put his goggles back on and looked up. "YEAH! There's treasure up there! And it looks like a lot of it!" from what he could see, a part of the tree branch they were sitting on was cut up as some kind of trapdoor.

Luffy went running towards the tree when he spotted them and they heard the boy with the top hat ask, "I wonder how much we need for a pirate ship."

"Don't know," Ace replied, "Ten million or one hundred million maybe? Long way to go."

"Another kid who wants to be pirate?" Usopp asked in surprise. "Who is he?"

"A pirate ship?!" Luffy exclaimed excitedly from the bottom of the tree.

"Luffy you idiot!" Nami called, though he couldn't hear her.

"I don't think that this is going to end well," Sanji said, looking back up at the boys who had jumped and slammed the trapdoor shut as they looked down.

"You guys!" Luffy called loudly, "Are you guys gonna become pirates? I wanna become one too!"

While Luffy just stood there grinning like an idiot, Ace and the boy exchanged terrified looks and quickly scrambled down the tree like insects before they ran to him and knocked him to the ground.

"Be quiet!" they yelled at the same time.

"Harsh," Brook laughed.

"Well, if they _did_ steal that money, which I'm sure they did, then they wouldn't want anyone else to know where they hid it," Nami said, remembering how hard she worked to make sure that no one other than her sister knew where she had hid the treasure she stole back from her days as a thief.

"Ace, I didn't know you went this far every day!" Luffy said, and the Straw Hats looked up to see that Luffy was tied to the tree. But this didn't seem to bother him as he tried to talk to both boys again.

"Shut up," Ace said, an annoyed frown on his face.

"So he _can_ speak," Robin said thoughtfully. "That's the first time I heard it."

"But how did he and Ace…?" Usopp began but Robin merely shook her head fondly, knowing that Luffy was just one of those people. He was just so accepting that little by little, without even realizing what he was doing, he could heal scars in a person heart.

"So this is the Luffy you were telling me about?" the new kid said to Ace.

Luffy looked up to Ace and asked happily, "OH! You told him about me?"

"I told him how annoying you are," Ace told him coldly.

"Man, he's mean," Usopp whispered.

"He also told me you're empty-headed," the boy added.

Luffy just laughed. "Oh yeah?"

"Doesn't he realize what they just said?" Zoro asked, raising an eyebrow.

"He never does," Nami said with an affectionate smile.

"You don't even realize that we're dissing you, do you?" the boy asked him.

"Yohoho, Luffy-san doesn't get bothered much," Brook said.

"He finally followed me all the way here," Ace said grumpily. "I didn't take any of the walkable routes either…"

"Are you a friend of Ace's?" Luffy asked the new kid, "Be my friend too!"

"That sounds familiar," Zoro admitted, and he knew they were all thinking back to when he wanted them to join his crew. Though, thinking about it now… when the captain said, 'Join my Crew!', it's not a request… more like your first order. That's how it had been since he, himself, joined up, and he had a feeling that's how it will always be. He thought of Jinbe and smiled. Looks like the fishman didn't have a choice in the matter…

"Shut up," the boy said at once, "I'm not going to be your friend."

"Then what's your name?" Luffy asked.

"That's what I want to know," Franky said, as he watched.

"Sa –" the boy began before he realized what he was doing and yelled out, "I'm not telling you!"

"Yeah, he has that effect on you," Nami sighed. "He asks a question and you can't help but answer."

"This is why I told you to live with me," the kid said, turning back to Ace. "The daily round trip training on the mountain road turned out to be bad! What should we do?"

They both were quiet as they thought it over. "He found our secret," Ace said slowly. "He'll tell somebody if nothing is done." His expression turned as cold as ice and he said, "We gotta kill him."

"WHAT?!" all the Straw Hats yelled in shock.

"How can they be so serious about that?!" shouted Usopp. "Saying that with such a straight face?"

"Ace is going to kill someone?" Chopper yelled, freaking out.

"Please tell me that the new guy talks him out of it…" Sanji began.

"Alright," the kid said, "Let's do it."

Luffy's smile was wiped from his face and he screamed out, "WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?!"

The two boys were startled by this as Luffy called out loudly, "Don't kill me! Help me! I don't wanna die!"

"Shut up, you idiot!" the boy said, shoving Luffy's head back in an attempt to make him stop screaming, but it didn't work.

"Well, you can't blame him for that," Robin pointed out.

"What do they think they're doing?" Nami cried out. "They can't really mean that do they?"

"Ahhhh!" Brook called out, his boney hands on his skull face. "Luffy-san is dead!"

"He's not dead you idiots!" Zoro yelled at him.

"Sabo, kill him already!" Ace yelled, pointing at him to do the job.

"What?!" the kid, now called Sabo, cried out, "You do it!"

"I've never killed anyone before!" Ace yelled.

"Well, he sure tried," Zoro added, thinking of the bridge, falling rocks and trees, and leaving Luffy to get eaten by wild animals.

"Me neither!" Sabo yelled back as Luffy continued to scream as they argued, "And I don't know how!"

"Don't throw me in the water!" Luffy cried out.

"Luffy you idiot!" Usopp yelled, "You don't tell people that!"

"What is he thinking?" Zoro asked, smacking his forehead.

"Ok!" Ace called at once, "Let's head to the river!"

"Why did he tell us that?" Sabo yelled.

"He's an idiot!" Ace told him.

"That I can't disagree with," Usopp sighed.

"Help me!" Luffy screamed.

"Shut up!" they both yelled and he did for a brief second. But then he continued yelling, "I don't wanna die!"

"Murder sure isn't as easy as it sounds," Zoro said nodding knowingly.

"Yeah, how many people have you killed?" Usopp asked him.

"What did you say?" he asked him darkly and Usopp cowered where he was.

"NO! Don't kill me!" he pleaded to the swordsman.

"But still," Brook said angrily. "Killing a child? How is that going to fix anything?"

"Oh, I don't think that they ever would've killed him," Robin said confidently. "No matter how cold Ace is I don't believe that he would've been able to do that."

"Haven't you been watching?" Usopp said to her, pointing a finger to Ace. "It sure looked like it to me!"

"No matter how cold he is, he's still a child," Robin said firmly. "And I don't think that he would kill him. The fact that they're freaking out here proves that." Zoro didn't say anything, but his arms remained crossed and his eye was narrowed as he looked to Sabo and Ace, wondering…

Just then they heard another voice call out through the trees, "I hear a voice from the forest!"

Ace and Sabo froze glancing over their shoulders as another said, "It sounds like a kid's voice!"

"Oh no!" Sabo whispered as Luffy finally shut up. "Someone's coming!"

"Set him free for now!" Ace said at once, and a smile came back to Luffy's face. "We gotta move from here before they find our treasure!"

They watched as the boys untied him and threw him into some nearby bushes as they waited.

"What's going on?" Nami asked.

"Looks like they have company," Zoro stated, watching as the voices came closer and closer.

"Probably the bad kind too," Franky said, he already knew that it couldn't have been a good thing from their reactions.

A group of men came into their sights. "Everybody knows those brats around here. Ace and Sabo. Are you sure it was Ace who took the money?" said a large, bulky man with long lilac hair, a thick neck, and muscular arms. He carried a sword in one hand and the frown on his face as he looked down to three average sized men with him—two of which looked beaten up.

"Yes… we're sorry," the one with a bandage arm in a sling. "We shouldn't have let our guard down."

"How outrageous he is," the large man said sourly. "He can't just steal our money! If Captain Bluejam hears about this, he's going to kill all of us!"

"Are they pirates?" Chopper asked.

"They sure don't look like school girls playing house," Sanji told him sarcastically. "And it sounds like Ace stole some money from them."

"Oh!" Usopp said, hitting his palm with his fist in understanding as he remembered seeing Ace carrying that heavy sack with him. "So that's what he was carrying with him when he went running into the forest!"

"And now they came to look for it," Franky said knowingly.

"Damnit!" Ace whispered from where the three boys were crouched behind the bushes, a grimace on his face, "I didn't know those thugs were working for Bluejam!"

"You mean that money you stole was from them?" Sabo hissed to him.

"I shouldn't have taken that money," Ace said seriously and Sabo rolled his eyes in frustration.

"I can kinda understand how Sabo must feel," Nami sighed exasperatedly.

"He has a real sword," Sabo muttered, pointing at it. "That's Porchemy who works under Bluejam. He's crazy! You know that right? They say he scalps his opponents after they lose a fight with him! While they're still alive!"

"Ok," Usopp gulped as Ace and Sabo both ducked down, "definitely a guy to stay away from."

"Let's just let them pass for now," Ace whispered.

The Straw Hats watched as they came closer and closer. Not realizing what had happened until they heard Sabo say, "Huh? Where'd he…"

Blinking, Sanji groaned out, "You've got to be kidding me! He didn't…?"

The next thing they heard was Luffy screaming. "Lemme go! What do you want from me?! Lemme go!"

"You idiot Luffy!" Nami yelled when she saw him in the pirate's hands.

"This isn't good," Chopper yelled out, now looking scared. "You heard what Sabo said about them?!"

"Trust Luffy to get himself to get caught by a bunch of thugs like them," Zoro muttered, a hand on his head as he watched.

"How could he get caught by hiding anyway?" Franky yelled out.

"He's dead!" Usopp called in a loud voice.

"Who's this little shit?" Porchemy asked, holding Luffy up by the front of his shirt.

"Help me!" Luffy yelled, flailing uselessly, "Ace!"

Nami smacked her forehead again, her head now starting to hurt from all the times she had done it. "What is he thinking?! Doesn't he realize that they're _looking_ for Ace?"

"He could've just written his own death sentence," Sanji whispered, holding his cigarette out.

"WHAT?" Chopper yelled, freaking out, "YOU MEAN THEY'RE GOING TO KILL HIM?"

"Well, seeing how we just saw Luffy this morning, I'm guessing that he survives," Zoro said, but he was frowning heavily in worry.

"Yeah, but I'm willing to bet that Luffy just got himself into a shitload of trouble," Franky said.

Interest flashed across Porchemy's face and he pulled him up a little closer as he asked, "Did you just call for Ace?"

"Just say no, Luffy!" Usopp called.

"So what?" Luffy asked, not at all intimidated by the glare.

"He's got a death wish," Usopp whispered, lowering his head in defeat.

"Do you know Ace?" Porchemy asked.

"I'm his friend," Luffy said at once before he blinked and added, "Oh, but he did just try to kill me."

"Yeah, call me crazy, but the last time I checked, your 'friends' don't try to kill you on a daily basis," Sanji said to himself.

"Can't he keep his mouth shut for once in his life?" Nami whispered.

"That fool!" they heard Ace whisper from in the bushes. "What a big mouth!"

"I agree with you there," Sanji nodded sagely.

"I don't know if you know about this," Porchemy went on to Luffy, "But your friend stole some money from us today. You don't know where it is, do you?"

Luffy's face went blank. They all glanced at each other, knowing that he knew exactly where that money was… and it was all right above their heads. All he had to do was tell them and they'll let him go…

"So what do you say?" Porchemy asked him coldly. Just then, Luffy looked away, puckering his lips and whistling. "I-I don't know," he said.

"Luffy if you're going to lie, at least let someone who does it for a living do it!" Zoro said clapping a hand on Usopp's shoulder.

"Hey!" Usopp said, smacking his hand away.

"Yohoho," Brook said. "Luffy-san's honest."

"Too honest is more like it!" Nami snapped. "He can't lie to save his life."

"He needs to get out of there," Robin said, watching them. "Who knows what they're going to do to him if they take him."

"Alright, Alright," Porchemy said with a rather evil grin on his face. "If you don't know then it can't be helped."

"Oh!?" Chopper called out happily. "So they're letting him go?"

"Of course they won't!" Usopp shouted at him. "He has information that they want! Do you honestly think that they'll let him go?"

Porchemy then chuckled as his face became overshadowed in a sadistic way. "Don't worry. We'll help you remember."

"What are you doing!?" Luffy cried as the pirates took him away, "Where are you taking me?! Lemme go!"

"They're not really going to hurt him are they?" asked Chopper, looking up at Zoro as Luffy continued to shout the whole time. "I mean… they wouldn't…?"

"They won't kill him," Robin said without any emotion on her face. "They need him to talk first. And to do that…?"

"You mean torture," Sanji finished.

"B-but he's just a kid! They can't!" exclaimed Usopp, sweat pouring down his face. "They wouldn't really… you don't think…?"

"If he knows the answer to what they want they'll do anything to get him to talk," Nami said, suddenly feeling a strong surge of hatred going through her body as she thought it over. "Its pirates like them I hate the most… the ones who are monsters."

"Not all pirate crews are like ours," Robin added

"In fact, we're more of the odd ones out," Sanji agreed.

"That's not the issue here," Zoro said as he followed after them.

"Let's go!" Franky yelled and they went running after the pirates with Luffy yelling the whole way.

They watched as Luffy was taken to a shack somewhere in the mounds of trash and bound tightly to an old pillar that was holding the roof up. The whole time, Luffy was fighting, calling out to them all defiantly, "Lemme go! I'm not gonna tell you anything!"

Porchemy left for a few moments and came back with an enormous wooden hammer that was about twice Luffy's size.

"Oh, it's just a big hammer," Nami sighed in relief as they watched him drag the heavy object over to Luffy and raised it over his head.

"He's going to be in for a surprise," Brook laughed. "That won't leave a scratch on Luffy-san."

But Zoro, Sanji, and Robin weren't as relieved as the others were. Sure, _this_ may not work on Luffy, but they'll soon realize that and resort to other measures when they discover that he was immune to blunt objects.

"You little shit!" Porchemy said before he brought the hammer down on Luffy's head and caused a slight dust storm from the inpact. When the dust cleared, the Straw Hats saw that Luffy was pinned under the hammer. But they all knew what was about to happen and then he bounced right back up so that the hammer flew off, did a flip in the air, and landed with a crash.

"I told you that my body turned to rubber after I ate the Devil's Fruit," he told them all, glaring at them. The other men in the shack began freaking out and backing away from Luffy as if he was carrying around a dangerous disease. The only one who didn't look surprised was Porchemy.

"I guess that ability can come in handy sometimes," Sanji admitted. "Not often, but sometimes."

"The Devil Fruit?" Porchemy repeated softly before he sneered. "Looks like you had the real one." He turned back to his men and demanded, "Give me a pair of gloves."

"Y-Yes!" one of them shouted and went running out of the shack.

"Gloves?" Chopper repeated in confusion.

"Weren't they watching?" Usopp laughed. "If a hammer wouldn't work, what makes him think that gloves will?"

"Unless they aren't normal gloves," Zoro said softly, suddenly having a bad feeling about all this as they watched Luffy being tied to a long rope before he was hung from the rafters.

The man came back with a pair of gloves in his hands and Nami gasped at what she saw. They were gloves alright, but they were covered in horrible, long spikes. Porchemy started to walk towards Luffy, shoving his hands into the spiked gloves as he went.

"Oh dear," Brook said softly, gripping his cane tightly.

"Th-they won't really hit a little kid with those!" Usopp called out frantically.

"I wouldn't bet on it," Zoro said, his hand resting on his swords again.

"Damn it," Sanji hissed, now breathing hard on the cigarette to calm his nerves… it wasn't helping.

"Listen up, brat," Porchemy said, holding up his fist, "That money your friend Ace stole if very important to our pirate crew." He reached out and grabbed Luffy's head and brought him closer to his face to intimidate him. "And you know where it is. So I need you to tell us."

"Just lie Luffy!" Chopper called desperately.

"He can't even if he tried," Franky said, grinding his teeth together at what was sure to happen.

"No!" Luffy yelled determinedly.

Porchemy didn't say a word as he let Luffy's head go, he swung back, still tied to the rope. Realizing what was about to happen, Robin said, "We might want to look away…?" but none of them did as they watched Luffy swing back and Porchemy punched him across the face with enough force, that his blood was splattered on the ground and leaving a long gash in his face.

Nami's eyes went wide and her hands fly to her mouth as she stared in horror at what she just saw. Franky turned his guns onto the pirate's head, only to remember that it wouldn't do any good, but he couldn't stop himself as he growled angrily. Chopper and Usopp were both crying, hugging their bodies just in pain from watching it; as the cigarette in Sanji's mouth fell to the ground as his hands curled into such tight fists that he was shaking. Robin didn't say anything, she didn't move from where she stood, but her eyes had become overshadowed as she watched the blood drip down from the spikes.

Brook's jaw was open, but it was impossible to tell what expression he had at the moment. However, he was shaking like Sanji as he took hold of his cane, the bones making a cracking around the handle. Zoro was the only other one who hadn't moved from where he was as he watched it. But his one eye was narrowed dangerously as he glared at Porchemy… his fingers twitching slightly as if trying to reach for the swords at his waist.

Luffy was trembling as he started to cry, silently, but cry nonetheless as he swung pathetically back and forth. He was biting his lip, biting back the screams.

"You don't want to make a pirate mad!" Porchemy exclaimed, "Our Captain, Bluejam, is brutal!"

"He's not the only one!" Usopp called as Chopper went forward, desperate to try and treat the injuries and crying out miserably when he passed right through Luffy, remembering that he couldn't do anything.

Luffy just hung there shaking—from fear or pain—it was hard to tell. They could see he was fighting back tears as he felt the blood running down from underneath his black hair.

"GYAAAAAAHHH! IT HURTS! I'M SCARED!" he screamed, crying hysterically as Porchemy raised his fist again. "HELP ME!"

"NO DON'T!" Chopper and Usopp yelled out but he struck him again and this time Luffy fell silent at once as he swung from side to side like a pendulum… the Straw Hats only stared in horror at what was happening.

"You guys go looks for Ace and Sabo," Porchemy commanded at his men, "We don't have time to stand around!"

"Y-Yes, sir!" they gasped and sprinted from the shack as if afraid they would be next if they stayed. And they couldn't blame them as Porchemy delivered another punch.

And that was how it went on. Porchemy would punch him and Luffy would cry or scream, but he never said anything. It was almost unbearable to watch—and it was even worse to be stuck watching it and not able to do anything. Luffy just dangled there, continuing to be hit and tortured. Nami finally covered her eyes and she started to cry, unable to watch anymore. Chopper had to cover his ears as well as his eyes, unable to bear the sounds of the punches and the splatter of blood. Tears were falling down his face as Usopp stood there, shaking from head to foot, looking like he was about to lose his mind from watching it. Franky was looking angrier and angrier with each minute passed—and it was clear that he wanted nothing more than to pummel these pirates until every bone in their bodies were broken.

"This is torture!" Brook yelled out furiously as more blood sprayed the ground from the deep gashes on Luffy's face, "Stuck watching this without being able to do anything!"

"Dammit!" Sanji yelled watching another hit. "How long is he going to go? Can't they see he's not going to tell them anything?!"

Robin and Zoro were both standing there, watching without a word. Each blow, each cry of pain, every tear that was shed, they kept watching. The gloves, that had been black when brought in, had now turned red and were now dripping the ruby liquid onto the ground as Porchemy kept going, determined to make him talk though it was clear that Luffy wasn't going to say a word.

The two of them were the only ones who had remained calm, though with each hit they winced slightly. This was just like Luffy… he shows respect for things that a person is willing to protect, be it treasure or a secret, to the point of even risking his life to protect it as well.

"What's going on!?" Usopp yelled, staring around desperately. "Where are Ace and that Sabo kid?! Are they just going to abandon him?! It's their fault he's here in the first place!"

"Spit it out already!" Porchemy yelled, panting heavily.

"P-P-Porchemy-san! It's no use doing it anymore!" the man with his arm in a sling begged. "He doesn't have the energy to even scream now!"

That was true. Luffy just hung limply from the ceiling—too weak to even yell. He was covered head to foot in blood and wounds as the steady drip… drip… of blood dripped down and into a pool below him. "I bet he won't say anything and to be honest I can't stand watching it, it's too cruel!" the man went on. "Show some mercy!"

"Listen to him!" Usopp called out uselessly. "Just let him go!"

Porchemy turned, furious, to his subordinate and with a kick in the face; he was sent flying to the wall.

"He attacked his own crewmates now…?" Brook yelled out furiously.

"This heartless bastard doesn't deserve to live," Sanji snarled.

"Look for Ace and Sabo if you have time to speak for the brat!" he shouted at him loudly. He was breathing hard, his eyes darting to the door as if he expected some kind of monster to come in. "Can't you see that we're the ones that are in danger here?!" he demanded. "We're already too late to give that money to Captain Bluejam!" Turning back to Luffy, he held the spiked glove up to hit him again.

"Answer me!" Porchemy yelled as he began punching harder than ever before—over and over he kept hitting him, trying to get him to crack. When he finally stopped from exhaustion, Luffy was breathing hard as he gasped out in a hoarse voice, "I won't say it!"

"Luffy just tell him!" Nami screamed out, tears in her eyes. "It's just money! It's not worth it!"

"You little shit!" Porchemy growled, punching Luffy yet again, "Stop trying to keep a secret like a grown up!" He gasped for breath as he hit him again. "SAY IT!"

"I won't!" Luffy said stubbornly, shaking his head as the tears fell. "I won't say it! I won't say it!"

A vein was standing out in Porchemy's head as he let his arms fall to the side. "Fine," he said, his voice surprisingly calm. "Enough."

Their eyes widened as they realized what was going to happen. Porchemy was through hitting Luffy—there wasn't any point now. After hours of torture, he was going to put an end to it all. Porchemy pulled off the blood-soaked gloves and walked over to the wall and hefted up his sword.

"NOOOOOOO!" Chopper yelled out frantically, "THEY CAN'T DO THAT! THEY'RE GOING TO KILL HIM!"

"EHHHHHH?" Brook screamed out. "HE'S REALLY GOING TO DIE?!"

"If you all would stop yelling and use your heads!" Sanji shouted at them, "Remember that Luffy's just fine now! So he obviously makes it out of this!"

But it was hard to tell themselves that as they watched Porchemy drag the heavy sword behind him along the ground… they could hear the sharp blade made that stinging, ringing noise as he stood in front of Luffy. Luffy forced his swollen, beaten, bloody face up to look at him… tears still in his eyes.

There was no mercy in Porchemy's face as he raised the sword high and whispered, "Then you die."

The Straw Hats all froze as Luffy shut his eyes tightly and Porchemy swung the sword. It was as if watching it in slow motion as the blade came to Luffy's neck… they didn't care if this was a memory or not… they couldn't stand by and watch this!

But just as they charged ahead, at that moment the wall behind them exploded apart and they spun around to see the wood breaking and flying apart as two familiar figures had come bursting in through with wild looks in their eyes.

"DON'T!" Ace and Sabo screamed, metal poles raised and ready for fight.

"ACE AND SABO!" Chopper screamed joyfully, tears in his eyes. "THEY CAME!"

**(Done with another chapter, I hope you all enjoyed it, and thank you all for all the suggestions to my request. I don't know when I'll be having the next chapter up, but I'm pretty sure that this is the last one for the month. I'm planning on taking a short break from writing for a couple days—so I hope that this will tide you all over until then. Also, like I promised, Garp does have a kinder side that they were able to see, and perhaps he knew more than we gave him credit for. Again, hope you all enjoyed it.)**


	6. The Three Sworn Brothers

**Chapter 6: The Three Sworn Brothers**

"ACE AND SABO!" Chopper screamed joyfully, tears of joy and relief in his eyes. "THEY CAME!"

"Well, it's about time," Zoro yelled out. While he was glad that those two finally decided to show up before it was too late; he couldn't help but feel resentment at how long it took. What's it been? A few hours already since that rubber idiot got himself caught by Porchemy? A few seconds longer and it would've been too late. What was the deal anyway? They didn't care about killing him earlier, didn't they? Just what happened to cause them to change their minds?

Just then he realized something… he looked around at the others and he could see that each one of them had been ready to attack. Chopper had shifted to his Kung-Fu Point, Robin had her arms half-raised, while the others each had weapon drawn or, in Sanji's case, had their leg burning softly. Each of them had been ready take Porchemy out and to protect Luffy; no longer caring that this had all happened years ago.

Not that he was one to talk… he quickly put his swords back in their sheaths before turning back to the real action.

Ace had jumped forward, knocking out the man closest to him with the metal staff he had before he landed directly in front of Luffy, holding it out threateningly. He glared furiously up at them all, just daring them to take a step closer.

"That's him, Porchemy!" one of the men yelled, pointing at him.

"That's the brat who stole our money!" the man with the sling added.

"What?!" Porchemy demanded, looking down at Ace with a mad glint in his eye.

Meanwhile, Luffy was looking up at Ace, tears falling hard and fast as relief broke over his face. "A-Ace!" he yelled, as if he couldn't believe that they had come to help. But Ace didn't seem to be interested in wasting any more time. He jumped up, taking a swing at Porchemy's head—but he didn't get a chance as the bastard's hand shot forward and caught Ace around the throat.

Zoro frowned, while he could see that Ace was already a decent fighter, he clearly didn't think before he attacked. He just charged in like an angry bull… that was no way to win.

Fighting hard to free himself, Ace struggled as Porchemy started to laugh. "Showing up on your own makes things much easier!" he said with an evil grin. "I didn't know what to do; your pal was so tight-lipped!"

"Ace!" Luffy cried out, terrified that something was going to happen to him.

"L-Let me go," Ace choked out, still fighting to get freed before he cried out, "Sabo!"

That was when the second boy charged behind Porchemy and hit him with his own metal pipe so that he would drop Ace.

"That's right!" Nami screamed out, punching the air ecstatically as Porchemy fell to the ground, a bloody wound on the side of his face. "Take him out, Sabo!"

"Ace… Sabo…" Luffy said worriedly. Sabo stood his ground, but it was clear from the look on his face that he was scared out of his mind. Ace got back up to his feet, looking ready to another round.

"That hurt pretty bad you know," Porchemy said, slowly turning to face Sabo.

"I hope so," Sanji whispered.

"Yeah, you more than deserved it!" Usopp cheered on. "ACE! SABO! Beat him up!"

"You know what happens when you mess with grown-ups, don't you?!" Porchemy demanded, raising his sword high.

"Your opponent is right here!" Ace yelled as he slammed the pipe down on the ground. He then called to Sabo while jerking his head at Luffy, "Sabo, help him!"

"Ace," Luffy croaked out as Sabo nodded and warned, "The guy has a sword! Be careful!"

"I agree," Zoro said folding his arms, "Even if they aren't half bad fighters, and this guy is nothing but trash, but they're still just kids."

Ace charges Porchemy again, dodging around the sword like an acrobat while trying to hit back. While he was fighting, Sabo went for the other men; dodging around them all and knocking a knife out of one of their hands. Quick as a flash, he cut Luffy free and grabbed him, already heading to the hole in the wall. "Let's get out of here, Ace!" he yelled back.

"Yeah!" Usopp and Brook called happily. "Now all they have to do is run!"

"You go on ahead!" Ace called, not turning away from Porchemy.

"WHAT?!" Brook and the 'Weakling Trio' screamed out at him.

"Now is not the time to be playing the hero," Sanji said angrily. "They got Luffy, they should just leave while they're ahead."

Apparently, Sabo thought so too.

"You idiot!" he screamed at Ace, "Come on!"

"Once I face an enemy, I never run!" Ace just shouted out to him, gripping the pipe tighter than ever, readying himself for an attack.

"Is he trying to get himself killed?" Usopp cried out.

"What? You brat!" Porchemy yelled.

"Don't!" Sabo yelled desperately, still holding onto Luffy like he was a rag doll. "He's on a completely different level than the delinquents from town!"

"They need to get Luffy treated anyway!" Chopper said, looking at how lifeless Luffy was acting.

"Don't you get it?" Porchemy sneered, "Playtime is over now! You stole our money! You will obediently return it to us, you insolent brat! I'm sure you realize you've done a bad thing." He pointed his sword at Ace's face and said, "I won't hurt you if you give the money back."

"Why do I seriously doubt that?" Nami yelled out skeptically. "He had no problems killing a seven-year-old just a minute ago!"

Ace just used his pipe staff to smack the sword aside as he yelled, "We're gonna make much better use of it!"

"What did you say? Enough of the bullshit!" Porchemy cried, losing all façade and his face was contorted with anger.

"You…just wait here a minute!" Sabo said to Luffy before dropping him to the ground like a sack of flour so that he could fight with Ace.

"Why those heartless…" Usopp began as Luffy struggled to raise his head up to watch.

"You think they would be a little more gentle," Robin said with a sigh. "If those injuries get any worse, he could die."

"Robin, don't say things like that!" Usopp yelled at her.

"You're being too reckless!" Sabo hissed to Ace, "Why are you _always_ doing this?!"

"I never back down!" Ace said seriously.

"Apparently it's not the first time he's done this then," Sanji said with a frown.

"You gotta admire that," Zoro said, impressed.

"Not if it's gonna get you killed!" Nami yelled at him. "If he doesn't get out then he could die."

"But at the same time, they'll just chase after them even if they do run," Robin pointed out.

"So what are you saying?" Usopp yelled, freaking out. "The only choice they have is to fight then run?"

"Something that you're good at," Zoro pointed out.

"Would you stop it?!" Usopp yelled.

"Don't be ridiculous!" Porchemy yelled, raising his sword up and striking it down. Ace jumped up to try and knock it out of his hands, but instead he slashed through the pipe staff right in half and left a deep cut on Ace's forehead.

"If only this wasn't a memory," Sanji yelled. "I want nothing more than to kick that bastard's brains in."

"You aren't the only one," Franky said, his robot fingers twitching at the thought using one of his beams on this jerk.

"I too want a piece of him," Brook said, his sword drawn as he imagined fighting Porchemy in the children's place.

"If I lose to a pair of kids, I'll quit being a pirate!" Porchemy declared, raising his sword again.

"Then we'll make you quit!" Ace and Sabo yelled as they rushed forward together.

"I'm gonna slaughter you!" Porchemy screamed out with an insane flash in his eyes; and that's when the fight really broke out.

"Hmm," Zoro said as they watched. "They may be brats, but they're not half bad."

"YOW! GO FOR IT!" Franky cheered on with a grin.

Luffy just sat where he was and watched in awe—even though the two boys were getting beaten up, they were still able to fight him—until they were finally able to bring him down. Bleeding and hurt, Sabo grabbed Luffy like a doll and then he led the way out of the shack, with Ace right behind them.

"Thank goodness," Nami sighed in relief, so glad that nightmare was over.

"But why did those two come back in the first place?" Sanji asked as everything grew dark around them as the memory faded.

"Despite what we saw earlier, they're not unfeeling," Robin smiled. "If I had to guess, I'd say that when the two of them realized that no one had come back for the money, they might've guessed that Luffy hadn't said anything. And if that's what happened, then I'm also guessing that they realized that if they didn't go and get him, then he'd be killed."

"But they didn't seem to mind that idea when they tied him tied to that tree saying that they were going to kill him," Franky pointed out.

"Kids say things all the time," she said happily. "Sure, they said they _wanted_ to kill him… but I am also certain that they never would've actually gone through with it. The fact that they showed up at all is proof."

"But that Luffy," Usopp said, shaking his head in awe at what he had seen. "Refusing to say anything even after all that? He was willing to die to protect Ace and Sabo… after all they put him through too? All he had to do was tell those thugs where the money was and that would've been the end of it."

"That's just how Luffy is," Zoro said simply. "I see now that's how he's _always_ been."

"But why?" Nami asked in confusion. "Why do all this for someone who doesn't even like him?"

"I think we're going to find out," Brook said as the memory returned. It was dark out and the three boys were hidden among some trees. All of them were heavily bandaged with Luffy wailing loudly, tears cascading town his face once again while the other two boys completely ignored him. But at the moment, they were just relieved to see that his injuries were taken care of…

Ace was sitting cross legged up on a small hill as he tried to fix his broken metal staff while Sabo leaned up against the rocks right next to him.

"That's a real bad habit you've got, Ace," Sabo said with a frown as Ace weighed the staff in his hands. "Refusing to run even when you're up against real pirates? Why are you so eager to die?"

"It doesn't feel right," Ace muttered, as if he hadn't heard a word that Sabo was saying. "It was better before."

Sabo just sighed as he shook his head.

"I gotta give this kid the credit he deserves. I mean, dealing with both Ace _and_ Luffy?" Sanji asked, shaking his head. "Yeah, I think I agree with you. We all have the scars to prove we've sailed with Luffy. My hat goes off to this kid if he dealt with them both."

"After this, Bluejam's crew will never forgive us," Sabo continued thoughtfully "They'll be after us from now on."

"That was so scary!" Luffy sobbed, still crying loudly. "I thought I was gonna die!"

Ace jumped down from his perch and seemed to lose his temper again. "YOU'RE SO ANNOYING! SHUT UP!" he screamed at Luffy, "HOW LONG ARE YOU GOING TO CRY FOR ANYWAY?! I HATE WEAKLINGS AND CRYBABIES! YOU REALLY PISS ME OFF!"

"What the hell is with him?" Nami asked, a deep frown on her face, "Sure, Luffy can get on your nerves a lot, but this is getting out of hand!"

"Ace-san is very harsh," Brook said, tilted his head and Chopper hid behind Zoro again.

"Luffy was tortured for hours and he's now yelling like it's his fault," Franky said sourly before adding, "Well, it is his fault for getting caught in the first place but still…"

"Not helping Franky!" Usopp yelled at him.

"I think that we're about to get some answers here," Robin said softly, approaching the three children a little closer—knowing that Ace would never let this go without getting some answers. At Ace's words, Luffy shut up at once.

"Well, that was quick," Sanji said in surprise as the other two boys looked startled. Normally it took a lot more to get Luffy to be quiet.

Sniffling a little, Luffy bowed his head and muttered, "Thank you." The other two were looking at each other, as if not understanding why they were being thanked. "For…" Luffy went on, tears now starting up again, "for saving me!"

For some reason, Ace seemed to grow angry again. "Why you!" he began, as if expecting a fight, but Sabo stopped him.

"Oi, oi," he said, trying to calm him down, "He's just thanking us."

"I just don't get how these two could be the same brothers we saw together in Alabasta," Nami said, folding her arms, now completely lost to how these two kids became the two brothers they saw together.

"We're talking about years apart, Nami," Robin answered softly.

"But why is he so angry?" Chopper asked, nervously looking at Ace's angry face. "I don't like seeing him like this! He's scaring me!"

"It just seems like he really hates Luffy," Usopp added with a confused frown.

"Oh, I don't think that it has anything to do with Luffy," Robin said knowingly.

"Huh?" they asked, looking at her, completely lost.

"Ace-san doesn't know how to respond to someone in a positive way," Brook said sadly.

"I think that's it in a nutshell," Robin agreed, remembering all her years of pain of being alone—she could understand Ace's feeling quite well. "I don't think that he's had too many people who care about him. He must be carrying around a lot of anger inside… so much so that he just can't contain it… that's why he loses his temper over the tiniest little things. That's why he lashes out at everything… because that's what he's used to."

"But what made him change so much?" Chopper asked.

She smiled, and it wasn't a forced one either, a true smile. "Isn't that obvious?" she asked him, her eyes going back to Luffy.

"I don't get it!" Ace's voice shouted out, interrupting them and they looked up, "Why didn't you tell them?! Those guys kill women and children without a second thought!"

Luffy sniffled, trembling slightly at Ace's loud voice. "If I'd told them… I could never be your friend."

"So _that's_ why," Brook said softly, understanding washing through his body.

"That'd better than dying isn't it?" Ace demanded him. "Why do you want to become my friend anyway?"

"Because…" Luffy started off, but seemed unable to tell him the reason. "Because…"

"After all the stuff that I put you through?" Ace pressed on, wanting an answer, "Why did you still follow me this far?"

"That's what I want to know," Usopp said crossly. "If it had been me, I'd given up after that first day!"

"Well, good thing that you and Luffy are different," Zoro said.

"Hey!" Usopp yelled.

"Because…" Luffy said softly, he stopped for a moment as if afraid to say what was on his mind. But then he looked up and finally yelled out, "Because there isn't anybody else!"

"I thought that was the case," Robin said softly, understanding Luffy's desperate desire to follow after Ace day after day. Having seen that familiar look of pain and loneliness in this Luffy's eyes as he went chasing after Ace no matter what the danger was.

Ace blinked, unsure to what to say to that, but Luffy went on to explain, "I can't go back to Fushia Village, and I hate mountain bandits. If I didn't chase after you, I'd be all alone! And being alone is worse than being hurt."

No one said a word to that; all of them fully understanding now. For they all knew that feeling all too well… that painful feeling of being alone. Before they joined the Straw Hat crew… and for those two long years of training on their own, they all felt that same loneliness that made the days seem so long. But when they joined up, it was as if that pain in them disappeared… they travel around from place to place and the days just seem to fly by in a happy blur… a life that they wouldn't trade anything for.

"That explains it all," Brook said softly, solemnly, "I think we all understand now why Luffy-san never gave up."

"Ace was everything Luffy had," Robin summed up for them all. "Without him, he was all alone. Yes, he treated him terribly… but for Luffy, being alone hurt more than any of those wounds."

"Aww… Luffy," Nami whispered feeling tears in her eyes at that as Franky burst out crying.

"That's gotta be the sweetest thing I've ever heard damn it!" he yelled to the sky as the tears gushed down his face as Chopper howled next to him.

"Already, the bonds of brotherhood are taking root!" Usopp declared as he covered his eyes with his arm as he sobbed. "The first step has been taken!"

"WOULD YOU ALL SHUT UP?" Nami screamed at them, but she was unable to stop her own eyes burning as she watched them.

Ace looked loss for words as he thought over what Luffy was saying. "What about your parents?" he asked slowly.

"Just Grandad, nobody else," was Luffy's simple answer.

"And you can't blame him for not wanting to be around him," Usopp said, his tears drying up as he remembered what Garp considered '_training'_.

"That is a good question though," Nami said softly, rubbing her eyes dry. "What about Luffy's mother? His father… well, I could understand why Luffy never knew about him, but his mother…?"

"At this point," Zoro said with a shrug, "I think it's safe to assume that she's dead. But even if she's not, that's none of our business."

Ace just looked at Luffy long and hard. "It isn't so bad when I'm here?" he asked, his tone no longer as cold or as harsh it had been up until now.

"Right," Luffy nodded.

"And it'd be bad if wasn't here?" Ace continued, his voice still surprisingly gentle, as if he was afraid of what Luffy might answer.

"Right!" Luffy said again.

Zoro looked over at Ace and watched how the boy's hand tightened on his staff. He then asked something that made them all stare at him.

"You want me to live?" he asked quietly, his eyes were no longer filled with anger… it was… curiosity.

Luffy looked surprised by the question and said, "Of course I do!"

Zoro watch Ace in understanding. Two unlucky kids who didn't belong anywhere crossed paths… is this a joke played by fate… or an unavoidable destiny…?

Franky continued to cry loudly, now bawling at the convection in Luffy's voice, "Such a touching scene!"

"Would you shut up?!" Zoro and Sanji yelled at him.

Ace's face was shadowed so they couldn't see what was going through his head at the moment. "I see," was all he said as he turned around, so that the other two couldn't see him. "But still," he added as he scratched his head. "I hate spoiled kids like you."

At those words, all the sadness in Luffy vanished at once as he jumped down and yelled angrily, "I'm not spoiled! I'm strong!"

"Strong?" Ace shouted, turning back to him, his expression skeptical, "How are you strong?! You're supposed to be a man but you keep crying all the time!"

"Well, he might not be so strong now," Robin said smiling, seeing already that Ace's heart of ice was melting. "But he sure is in the future."

"Have you ever been punched with a spiked glove?!" Luffy demanded. "I'm only seven! I won't cry when I get to be ten year old like you! I'll be much stronger!"

"I didn't cry when I was seven either!" Ace yelled, pressing his forehead up against Luffy's as they continued to argue. "You idiot! Don't compare yourself to me!"

"I'm gonna be stronger than anyone else! I promised Shanks that I'd become a great pirate!"

"A pirate?! You?!" Ace sneered.

"Ah, brotherly love," Brook laughed as the boys continued to glare and argue. "It's nice to see it, Yohohoho."

"It doesn't look much like love to me," Chopper said watching them with an apprehensive look on his face.

"You clearly don't understand brothers," Franky said with a smile. "This is common among them."

"Well, they might not be the perfect example of brothers, but I don't think we need to worry about Ace trying to kill Luffy anymore," Sanji said in relief.

"Really?" Chopper asked hopefully.

"I think that it's safe to say that," Nami admitted with a smile, her hands on her hips as she watched the two now in a glare-off.

"Alright, that's enough," Sabo said calmly, stepping between them and pushing the two apart. "Oh, by the way, I've got a problem here."

The anger melted right off of Luffy's face as he asked, "A problem?"

"What now?" Usopp asked, not understanding what the problem was.

Sabo nodded. "Because of what happened today, Bluejam's crew will be trying to find and kill will all three of us, right?"

Ace blinked. "Well, yeah. I guess."

Sabo walked passed him as he continued to talk, "I've been living in this forest, but it's close to their base, in Pirate's Cove. What do you think would happen if I fell asleep somewhere and they attacked me?"

"He'd be a dead man," Zoro answered at once.

"He'd be toast," Franky stated.

"Burnt to a crisp," Sanji added.

"You'd die," Ace said bluntly.

Luffy nodded. "You'd definitely die."

"Yep," Usopp agreed. "No doubt about it…"

"Alright we get it!" Nami yelled, rolling her eyes. "Honestly, men…"

"Right," Sabo said, looking back at them. "So I've gotta ask you something."

As the three boys pulled together in a huddle and began to talk.

"What are they saying?" Chopper asked, trying to get closer so that he could listen in.

"I think it's obvious," Sanji said, having pulled out another cigarette and lightning it. "Sabo needs a place to stay until everything cools down so where do you think they're going to go?"

"You mean back to Dadan's place?" Usopp asked in surprise.

"Good place to hide, with mountain bandits," Nami added and sure enough, the boys all turned and were heading back in the direction to where the bandit's hut was. Everything faded away, meaning that the memory was over.

"Does this mean Ace and Luffy really are friends now?" Chopper asked them all as they were sent back to the darkness.

"Well, I wouldn't say they're _best_ friends," Sanji admitted. "But at least they've come to an understanding and I doubt that we have to worry about Ace knocking Luffy off anymore bridges."

"But what about that Sabo kid?" Nami asked them, asking the question that was all on their minds.

"Yeah, who is this guy?" Chopper asked, puzzled, "I don't think that Luffy's ever mentioned him before."

"First time that I've heard of him," Usopp agreed, before looking to Zoro. "You've been with Luffy the longest out of all of us. You know who he is?"

"I haven't been on his crew that much longer than you have," he told him irritably. "What's the big deal? It's not like he has to tell us about _everyone_ from his past. I'm sure that there are plenty of people we know that we never told each other about."

His thoughts strayed a little to Kuina at that.

"Well… sure," Usopp said hesitantly. "But aren't you curious?"

"It doesn't matter if I'm curious or not. The fact is that it's none of our business," Zoro said firmly. "So we don't know _everything_ about each other's pasts. What does it matter? We really shouldn't be knowing about any of this to begin with. We should stop watching this and get out before we see something that we shouldn't…"

But before anyone could come up with any ideas, the images came back. Ace, Luffy, and Sabo were sprawled out on the bandit's floor in a tangle of blankets, Dadan was standing there, gaping at what she was seeing.

"I can see that this is her new nightmare," Nami sighed, looking at the horrified look on Dadan's face. "She was having trouble with just two… but now there's a third one."

"Yohohoho! They're multiplying!" Brook called out happily.

"What the hell is going on?! ACE! LUFFY! Who is that?!" she yelled out loud enough to wake the whole island. "Why is there another of you brats here?!"

"Well they sure know how to start things off," Nami drawled.

Luffy groaned sleepily, sitting up and briefly looking up at Dadan through sleepy eyes. "Who's who?" he asked hazily before he fell back to the floor and started to drift back off to sleep.

Ace forced himself to sit up next as he looked up at to see who it was. "You're so noisy in the morning," he grumbled, and asked them before he fell back to the floor like Luffy had done, "Don't you know what time it is?"

Sabo sat up almost immediately after that, but he just looked ahead of him for a few seconds before he fell back with a groan.

"Yeah, I don't think this is the way you want to start off an introduction," Nami sighed.

Robin just smiled. "After what happened last night, of course they just want to sleep in."

"Why's there suddenly a third kid here?" Dadan yelled at them, glaring at Sabo. "Who are you?"

The crew watched in amusement as the three boys finally opened their eyes again. "Who me?" Sabo asked stood up, rubbing his red eyes. When he was a little more awake, he put on a huge grin while Ace and Luffy stood back to watch.

"I'm Sabo," he said brightly, now fully awake, "Hi! You're Dadan right?"

"Sabo?" she repeated slowly. "I know I've heard that name before."

"Really?" he asked cheerfully. "Well, that makes it easier for me then." He took her hand and shook it merrily, "Let's try to get along starting today!"

"Well, he gets to the point," Brook laughed.

She pulled her hand away and barked, "Get along? Don't think that you'll be staying here!"

Instead of answering, he merely farted and Sanji smacked himself in the face. "Looks like I found out where Luffy learned such bad manners."

"That's disgusting!" Nami yelled in revulsion.

"Don't answer with a fart!" Dadan screamed as Sabo laughed. "You've gotta be kidding me!" she went on. "If you're the Sabo I've heard about, then you're supposed to be one hell of a brat!"

Sabo grinned and asked, "Really? And _I_ heard you're an old hag!"

"Really?" Sanji asked deadpanned as Franky howled with laughter. "That's really not how you win someone over."

"They are staying with her," Nami agreed. "She may not be the nicest person, but you think that they would try to be more polite."

"You shouldn't say things like that!" Dadan yelled as the other bandits fell over with what Sabo had just said. "I don't want to deal with anymore unruly kids."

Sabo just kept grinning. "But you're a nice old hag who can't turn down any requests from other people too, right? I heard that you're an old hag who's like a man among men!"

"Did he really just say that?" Nami asked, her head falling forward a little. "I can't help but feel sorry for her."

"You can't really blame them," Zoro said, looking at Dadan with a suspicious glance. "It's hard to tell that she's a woman."

"I'm a WOMAN!" Dadan shouted, staring down at the blond. "Can't you tell!?"

"I couldn't tell," Chopper stated.

After a long moment, Dadan let out a defeated sigh before she turned away and called them by name before snapping, "Since you're all under my care you'd better hurry up and get to work!"

Robin laughed, "Looks like she's not as bad as she makes herself out to be."

"It's not like she could just kick three boys out when they didn't have anywhere else to go," Nami said.

"Well, they don't know that they went and made this Bluejam character mad yet," Zoro added. "So I wonder just how they'll take the news."

The three boys grinned at each other happily.

"Thanks, Dadan!" Sabo said gratefully before they all turned and went running out the door. "Then, we're off!"

Usopp and Nami both fell face-forward at that.

"Just like that?!" Nami yelled as the rest of the crew all laughed.

"Did you honestly expect anything else?" Franky asked beaming. "Who wants to stick around cleaning all day when you can go out and explore?"

"HEY!" Dadan yelled, "Luffy you're supposed to do the laundry and clean the house!"

"No way!" Luffy cried, turning around to stick his tongue at Dadan, before realizing that he was being left behind. "Ah! Ace! Sabo! Wait for me!"

"I think that it's a good thing that he's leaving," Sanji said knowingly, painfully remembering just how poorly Luffy can do 'chores' anyway.

"Yeah, if he did try, he'll only end up making a bigger mess than before he started," Robin giggled.

"Oh, right!" Sabo said, stopping so suddenly that Luffy ran into him and fell back onto the ground. But Sabo didn't pay any attention as he turned to look back at the bandits, "I forgot to say…" he then yelled out loudly, "Hey Dadan! While we're out, Bluejam's crew might come around. So be careful!"

"Bluejam might be coming…?" Dogra repeated in a stunned voice. "Why?"

"We got mixed up with one of their crew and beat him up!" Sabo yelled. "See ya later!"

"What a way to tell them," Zoro laughed at the horror-struck looks on the bandit's faces as the three boys went running off.

"Dadan sure is an understanding old hag," Sabo said to Ace when they went chasing after them.

"But she's still an old hag," Ace told him firmly.

"Well, they're rude," Nami sighed as they all ran to try and keep up with them. "She's letting them stay with her even though a crew of pirates is after them."

"Little boys are all the same," Robin pointed out smiling.

"So what now?" Sabo asked.

Luffy answered that by running up with them and shouting out, "FOOD!"

"Of course he would say that…" Sanji stated, shaking his head.

Ace looked away in annoyance as Sabo laughed. "Alright! Let's get some food!"

Soon that memory faded out and by the time they were back in another memory, they were sitting by a large river. Ace and Sabo were sitting at a campfire with a giant fish's skeleton that was just picked clean. While they ate, Luffy was drooling just a few feet away.

Sabo then turned to Luffy and asked, "Luffy, so you're a Devil Fruit User?"

"Yup!" Luffy said proudly as he eyed the fish.

"So that explains why you can't swim," Sabo said as he threw the tail of the giant fish to him. "Here, you have some too."

Thrilled, Luffy jumped forward and caught it, shouting out his thanks.

"Well, he seems to be a little nicer than Ace," Chopper said, still looking uneasily at Ace, who had snapped at Sabo, "You're too soft, Sabo."

"It's no big deal," he smiled back.

"Yep! I like Sabo!" Chopper said smiling. "He's so nice now!"

"Well, it doesn't take much, consider what Ace was like," Usopp whispered, feeling sweat fall down his face at all the things he'd done.

Sabo then got up and went to Luffy asking, "So which fruit did you eat?"

"The Gum Gum Fruit," Luffy answered as he swallowed the tail whole.

"Gum Gum…?" Sabo repeated before he looked stunned, "You're made of rubber?"

"That was all of our reactions too," Usopp said, remembering the shock of finding out that Devil Fruit Users really do exist.

"Yeah, that's right!" Luffy said wiping his mouth.

Ace meanwhile was using a bone of the fish as a toothpick as he said, "So you became unable to swim in exchange for being a rubber man? That's stupid."

"Yeah, it is isn't it?" Sanji agreed.

Luffy jumped back up and yelled defensively, "It's not stupid! I've got a bunch of unbeatable techniques."

"That's for sure," Chopper said, thinking of some of them. But Robin was smiling knowingly—knowing that Luffy had a long way to go before he could call them _unbeatable_.

"Oh, is that right?" Ace asked, leaning back on the ground patting his full stomach. "A guy who couldn't even catch a fish shouldn't talk like that."

Sabo pulled on Luffy's cheek as Luffy marched over to Ace, as if about to fight him. "So you really are made of rubber!" he exclaimed in interest, Luffy stretching out over several feet. "That's so cool!"

"Don't play with me like that," Luffy said before Sabo let go and he fell forward to the ground with a snap.

"They're treating him like some kind of toy," Usopp said with a sweatdrop.

"Well, it's not everyday that you met a rubber man," Brook answered. "When I first found out… it was so surprising! I thought my eyes would fall out… ah! Not that I have any eyes. Yohohoho!"

"Still, rubber can stretch, shrink, and expand," Sabo went on. "It might be pretty useful in a fight."

"Weird, but useful," Zoro agreed and soon they were watching and laughing loud and hard as Luffy tried to show off his Gum-Gum Balloon only to end up as a beach ball for the boys… as they played around, the boys accidently ended up kicking him to the water… and Luffy was eaten by a crocodile.

"WHAT JUST HAPPENED?" Usopp screamed as Brook and Chopper yelled in shock.

"I bet that's what those two were wondering," Robin said smiling as the two boys screamed and watched the crocodile spit out the straw hat and dive into the water.

"Wait up you!" they yelled. "We won't just let you eat him and run!" And then they dove in after him before everything grew dark.

"At least they're acting a little concerned for his safety," Brook said brightly, "Much better than before."

"They sure have their work cut out for them though," Sanji sighed, shaking his head. "After all, it takes all eight of us to try and keep Luffy out of trouble, and even then, that's no guarantee that nothing's gonna happen."

The next memory was of the three boys carrying the dead crocodile, tied with ropes, above their heads. Luffy was behind them—carrying the tail, and looking angry at the other two in front of him.

"Well, you know…" Sabo offered slowly. "Don't be mad."

"How can he not?" Usopp demanded. "If it were me I'd be angry! They threw him to that croc!"

"Of course I'm mad!" Luffy yelled, obviously feeling the same way. "I was almost eaten!"

"Oh, shut up!" Ace called from the front. "You can eat as much as you want of this crocodile meat when we have it for dinner."

The anger on Luffy's face was immediately replaced with a bright smile. "Ok, I forgive you."

Nami sighed tenderly. "The best way to get to Luffy is through his stomach."

Sabo looked back at him and asked, "You're just going to forgive us so easily?"

"I want to eat this crocodile already," Luffy answered, his mouth drooling.

Sabo looked up at Ace and called, "There's something I wanna check on! Come with me!"

"Now what do you all think he's going to do?" Franky asked as they watched them leave the crocodile near some giant rocks before they headed back to the same tree where they had kept their treasure stashed in the day before. Had it really just been a day ago? It seemed like it had been so much longer than that.

Still, after stuffing leaves and flowers around their heads, the boys looked from behind the same bushes they hid behind before as they looked up to the tree. A group of men were there, searching around it, and a few of them seemed to have found the trapdoor.

"So?" one man yelled up at them irritably, "Did you find it?"

"No!" they called down, "Nothing!"

"Keep looking!"

They then heard Sabo whisper to Ace, "It's a good thing that we moved our 'Pirate Fund' to another place."

"Oh, that must've been what they were doing yesterday," Robin said, glancing over at them.

"Like that was worth getting a little kid killed," Usopp muttered bitterly to himself, still a little sore that they took so long to get back for Luffy.

"Yeah," Ace said softly, "You want to go look at the Gray Terminal?"

"What's the Gray Terminal?" Chopper repeated in confusion.

"I'm guessing that's what that giant junk yard is called," Sanji said, noticing how Sabo's eyes flickered in the direction of the mountains of trash.

"Yeah I guess," Sabo agreed before they looked at Luffy and said, "You should go back to Dadan's place first."

"Do they really think that he's going to do that?" Zoro asked rolling his eye.

"NO!" Luffy yelled so loudly that Ace had to dive top of him, covering his mouth to keep him quiet.

"Telling him to do that was pointless," Sabo sighed.

"What did you expect?" most of the crew asked while Brook and Robin both laughed. They followed the three of them back to the junk yard and watched as they came closer to the wall—silently keeping their eyes open for anyone who might be part of this Bluejam's crew. The three of them ended up piling up on top of each other like a totem pole behind a large pile of junk so that they could get a better look.

Not having any fear of being seen, the Straw Hats walked a little closer so that they could get a better look. The part of the city in those walls was all worn out, dirty and broken down… though at least there were some decent houses that were built there… much better than all the mountains of trash.

Looking inside the wall, they could see that there was a crooked sign labeled, "Edge Town".

"I guess that that must be where the residents who have at least a little money must be living," Usopp decided.

"I wouldn't call it the best place to live," Sanji said, looking at the suspicious buildings. "It looks like you get drug dealers and criminal spawn from that place. I bet that most people can't even leave their houses without needing some kind of protection against muggers."

"I rather live in there then with all this trash," Usopp pointed out, jerking his thumb behind them to where some shady-looking men were arguing with each other over what was in some bags. "I rather live there and inside a house then out here with these guys!"

Just then, some men, who they guessed were part of Bluejam's crew, were talking to some of the other Terminal residents; asking questions to where they last saw three young boys.

"What do you think that those guys are doing?" Chopper asked, pointing to the pirates.

"Looking for those three," Nami said, pointing to Luffy, Sabo, and Ace. "What else would they be doing?"

"This isn't good," Sabo's voice said and they looked back to see him looking anxious. "The place is swarming with delinquents from town, and Bluejam's crew. This is serious."

"We must've really made Bluejam mad," Ace said below him with Luffy struggling to support them both.

"I guess," Franky said, thinking of what happened at Water 7 to how his boys were beaten up and his house destroyed. He frowned at his crew at those memories, trying to hold back the resentment he felt. "If a couple kids stole from me and beat up my boys, I'd go after them."

"Hey guys!" a man behind them suddenly shouted and surprising the boys so that they fell into a heap on the ground, "Somebody here is looking for you!"

As soon as the trio was spotted, they ran for their lives with Bluejam's crew right behind them—and they were only able to lose them in the thick forest.

***Later***

"Damn it…" Usopp gasped, on his knees and tongue rolling out his mouth, trying to catch his breath after having run after them the whole way. "How can… how can they run… so… so fast like that?"

"Big baby," Nami said, as she fanned herself with her hand, "You're telling me that you're tired after a little run like that?"

"You and Robin were riding on Chopper!" he yelled back angrily as the three boys were found leaning against a tree—or Luffy's case—hanging upside down by a branch.

"Looks like they got the guys from the Gray Terminal helping them," Sabo said in a depressed tone, "Guess it's better to just lay low for awhile, at least until things calm down."

"That would be the best course of action," Sanji agreed. "The last thing they need is to go out and pick fights when they don't have to."

"It doesn't matter," Ace said firmly as he picked up his staff. "If we run into them, we'll just fight."

Nami sighed… that sounded like something the 'Monster Trio' would've said.

"Well, sure we could…" Sabo said hesitantly, "But there's no point in picking a fight."

"I agree with Sabo!" Luffy added brightly.

"That's a first," Brook laughed, strumming up his guitar, "Luffy-san choosing _not_ to fight."

"I think he's only agreeing with Sabo because he's nicer," Robin giggled.

"You just shut up!" Ace snapped at him and just like that the memory faded away until they were standing in a large clearing, Ace and Luffy stood across from each other with Sabo standing a short distance away watching them.

"What are they doing now?" Chopper asked, looking around in puzzlement.

"Begin!" Sabo called, holding up his hand like how a referee would in a wrestling match.

At that, Luffy ran ahead, spinning one of his arms in a circle while Ace stood still, his arms crossed over his chest—as if testing him. "I'm going!" Luffy yelled confidently, "Gum Gum… Pistol!"

That was when he shot his fist forward… but the aim was so bad that he ended up hitting the ground, which caused his fist to bounce back up and punch him in the face. That was when the Straw Hats all started laughing.

"Oh, the poor guy!" Sanji laughed, holding his ribs. "He's so bad… but this is just too good!"

"That doesn't surprise me," Robin laughed loudly. "After all… it took me all these years to be able to fully tap into my own Devil Fruit powers. You don't master your abilities instantly after all."

"Yohohoho, that's true," Brook added cheerfully as he watched Luffy spinning around like a top before falling to the ground. "It took me over fifty years to be able to use the full effects of the Yomi Yomi fruit!"

"Well, I guess we all have to start somewhere," Franky pointed out as he roared with laughter.

"We should just be happy he got better," Sanji added grinning.

Ace sighed. "I told you," he said, suddenly rushing forward and kicking Luffy in the face, "What the hell are you trying to do?!"

Sabo grinned. "It's over," he said, turning to write a big zero on, what appeared to be a scoreboard, behind them.

"What are they doing?" Chopper asked, now looking at them all, hoping that one of them could explain.

"I get it," Zoro said, looking at the scoreboard. "They're training. Fighting each other and improving their skills."

"Looks like Luffy keep losing," Usopp said, looking at all the zeros.

"I recall that Luffy did mention that he could never win against Ace," Sanji said thoughtfully, thinking back to their meeting in Alabasta.

"He didn't seem to be upset by it though," Chopper reminded him.

"Yeah, never being able to win a single fight against someone is rough," Zoro said, thinking of all 2001 straight losses with Kuina. "But it only makes you that more determined to try harder."

Suddenly it was Sabo and Ace's turn to fight, this time with Luffy watching. The fight was longer this time around, each boy giving as good as he got—both pretty well matched—but it ended up with Ace winning again. After that, Luffy went against Sabo… only for Luffy to have his ass handed to him.

Franky whistled loudly. "That's harsh… he just can't seem to catch a break."

Ace rolled his eyes and sighed. "I've already told you," he said, "Your fruit isn't useful for anything."

"Crap! It won't work!" Luffy yelled out in frustration, "Just a little more… Again!"

"No," Ace said, crossing his arms stubbornly, "We can only fight one hundred times per day. Wait until tomorrow."

"Don't they have anything better to do with their time than pound each other?" Nami demanded exasperatedly.

"I guess not," Usopp said, as he fell to his knees at the thought of getting beaten hundreds of times over the years. The guys really were monsters…

Sabo went back to the scoreboard and counted them all up as Luffy and Ace continued to argue. "Final scores… me and Ace were 26 to 24." His jaw fell open as he cursed and cried out, "He beat me two more times? I've got to get stronger!"

"And of course, Ace is the strongest one," Usopp sighed tiredly.

"I got that feeling after we met him," Nami sighed, running her hand through her hair.

"Luffy sure has a long way to go to beat him," Franky laughed, but stopped almost at once at the reminder that he couldn't… not anymore. Thankfully, no one seemed to notice his slip of the tongue as Luffy was now yelling, "When I'm ten, I'll kick your ass!"

"By then, we'll be thirteen," Ace reminded him before he picked up his pipe staff and called to Sabo, "We better go look for some food."

Luffy's angry mood changed at once at the mention of food and was more than happy to follow after them to a river that was filled with the same crocodiles that almost ended up eating Luffy before.

"They're going hunting for crocodiles?" Brook asked.

"Looks that way," Robin smiled.

"Hey," Zoro said with a grin. "In a place like this, you eat _it_ before _it_ eats you."

"Looks like we'll be having crocodile for diner," Ace decided as they observed the crocs, trying to figure out which one to eat.

"That meat looks good," Luffy said, drool dripping down his face.

"Man, doesn't he ever think of anything but food?" Sanji said.

"At least you don't have to worry about him wasting anything, right?" Usopp offered.

"Luffy," Sabo said, "Make sure not to get eaten, alright?"

"Wasn't it their fault that happened?" Chopper asked.

"It's always easier to blame Luffy for when things go wrong," Nami offered.

"Just watch," Ace said, "You'll just get in the way."

He hadn't even finished saying that when Luffy jumped down screaming out, "Crocodile meat!"

"I told you to watch!" Ace shouted as he and Sabo jumped after him.

"Boy he's a real handful," Franky laughed.

"Of course he was," Zoro smirked. "Even more back then than he is now… at least we know he can protect himself… we don't have to worry about him getting eaten all the time."

"Yeah, now it's only half the time," Nami sighed.

"I hope not," Chopper shivered as he watched the three beat of the crocodile and drag it back to shore. The next memory was of them standing near the wall that led to the place called _Edge Town_. They looked around expectantly, but for some reason they didn't see the boys.

"Now where are they?" Usopp asked, shielding his eyes as he looked around for any sign of them.

"Dunno," Zoro confessed, also glancing around. "Though I thought they decided not to come around here for awhile."

"You honestly expect them to actually go through with it?" Nami asked them irritably. "Luffy and Ace can't sit still… and that Sabo kid isn't much better."

"What are they doing?" Chopper suddenly asked as a large group of people were walking through the gate in the wall towards the city, each one carrying bags.

"I don't think it's strange to think that the residents here take what they find from the mountain of trash and then try to sell it," Robin said as a cloaked figure stumbled by, pulling a long cart that was covered with a tarp.

Zoro, Sanji, and Robin all looked up at the figure—watching it stumble around as if he was unsteady on his feet.

"Whoa, what's with that guy?" Usopp asked as the man almost fell and had to support himself against cart to keep him from going down.

"He looks like he had one too many," Franky commented.

"Let's follow him," Zoro said at once as Sanji and Robin all began to follow after him.

"Why?" Nami asked in surprise. "He's just some drunkard isn't he?"

"Trust us on this one," Zoro told them as they neared the figure now talking to a guard, asking what it was that they were pulling in the cart.

"Crocodile leather for sale," the figure said, pulling the cover back to show him.

"Wait… is that…?" Nami asked softly, suddenly realizing to who that _man_ was.

"Looks like it," Robin smiled back.

"Not bad, they're small enough to pull it off," Usopp said, now grinning.

"What are you all talking about?" Chopper asked, now completely baffled to what they were talking about.

"You'll see soon," Robin smiled at him gently as they continued to follow the figure through the gate and into the city. Like they all thought, the buildings here were dirty and rundown, but still much better than living at Trash Mountain in the Gray Terminal.

"Looks like this place is the rough part of town," Franky said, thinking of Water 7 and how he used to rule the black market. This almost reminded him of home…

"Hard to believe that people actually live here," Nami said, looking at the passing windows to either see timid or threatening figures looking out. "I wouldn't feel safe stepping outside my house if I had to live in a place like this."

"Better here than the Gray Terminal," Sanji offered once again as he looked around. "Didn't you did say that Goa Kingdom was known for being beautiful, Robin-chan? Because it couldn't fooled me?"

"Where the Nobles live, that's true," Robin answered as a group of thugs came out from the alleyway to the robed figure._ 'But like everywhere else, if you can't afford it then you're worthless.'_

"It seems you're carrying something valuable there," one of the muggers said as he walked forward with a smug grin on his face, "Answer, you bastard."

"Shut up if you know what's good for you," came a familiar voice from underneath the hood.

"Why are we following this guy?" Chopper asked them all, not realizing whose voice that was. "I thought that we were following Luffy and…?"

"Wait for it…" Franky said as the others smirked.

"What?!" the thug cried.

The pipe staff came from the cloak and tripped the thug up—thing was, it came from much lower than where the man's arm was supposed to be.

"Before you rob somebody, you should choose your targets more carefully!" that voice said, reaching down and throwing off the cloak to see that it was Sabo, Luffy, and Ace stacked on top of each other again, all of them looking ready to fight.

"Ah! So it was them!" Chopper exclaimed in amazement while the others all smiled at each other, deciding not to say anything.

"It's those brats!" one of the thugs cried. But before anyone could do or say anything more, the trio was on them and soon it was a brawl as the three kids took them all out.

Franky laughed and applauded as he watched Ace sucker-punched one of them so that he was out cold before he even hit the ground. "I love these guys! What a team!"

Though they were only kids, and were heavily outnumbered, they were more than a match for these guys as they knocked each one of them out. It was soon over, the three of them escaping with nothing but a few cuts and bruises—and once they found the cloak, they climbed up on top of each other's shoulders again—leaving as if nothing had happened.

"Should I be concerned that a few kids were able to beat up all those thugs who had guns and knives with them?" Nami asked them all, looking a little nervous at what she just saw.

"You saw the forest didn't you?" Zoro asked as they followed after the boys again, still dragging their crocodile leather behind them. "On this island, you have to get stronger or you'll get eaten. Personally, I think that those jungle animals are a bigger threat than any lowlife thug."

"You guys are heavy!" Luffy complained on the bottom of the stack as they stumbled through the streets.

"It'll be worth it," Ace's voice answered, "I'll treat you guys to some Ramen soon."

"Ramen?" Luffy's voice asked.

"How can he not know what Ramen is?" Sanji sighed, remembering the countless times that Luffy asked for that for dinner. It was his second favorite food—second only to meat.

"Well, it's not like they have anything but meat back with the bandits," Nami asked with a forced smiled.

"Just be patient and you'll see," Ace answered as they walked uneasily on their feet through Edge Town, and towards another gate that lead to a place called 'Town Center'. When they passed through this gate, that was when they all gasped at what they saw.

"Gorgeous!" Nami gasped, her eyes shining at what she was seeing. This whole town around them couldn't have looked more different than Edge Town… There were tall, brightly colored buildings on either side of them that were so clean that they shone like diamonds in the light.

There were hundreds of stores on all sides, people dressed in fine clothes doing their shopping and enjoying the nice day… they were all so taken aback that almost lost track of the boys and had to run to keep up with them. They travelled through Town Center for a few blocks before they met with some men and traded the crocodile skin for a decent amount of money before they headed on, deeper into the city.

In the center of the city was another wall which held a beautiful palace that rose higher than a mountain and looked down at them all.

"I'm guessing that's where the nobility live," Robin said, looking up at it with a strange look on her face—as if she swallowed something bitter. "This really is Goa Kingdom. A country without any trace of dirt… known as the most beautiful across the East Blue."

"I thought Luffy was born in Fushia Village," Chopper asked, tilting his head in confusion.

"He was," Robin answered, "Fushia Village is still part of this kingdom, but I'm guessing that it's so small that they don't notice it. Remember? I guess that it's on the other side of the island…" She remembered the direction that Garp came from when he first brought Luffy to live with the bandits, and the opposite direction that Ace went running off to in everyday.

They followed after the trio of boys, all of them staring around at all the fancy stores and expensive merchandize.

"Does anyone else notice something about these people?" Zoro asked as the people were giving the boys the same exact critical looks.

"The fact that they're all ugly?" Usopp pointed out, which was true. The faces here were indeed all very ugly, with constant sour or stuck-up looks… as if they smelled something disgusting.

"Well, yeah," Zoro added, "But I was talking about the fact that they're avoiding them like he's carrying a plague or something."

"Yohoho, you're right," Brook said as they watched the people around them moving back as if afraid of getting their clothes dirty.

"I think that it's the clothes that they're wearing that's doing it," Robin sighed, having seen this very often. How in high society, how you dress and how much money you have means everything…

"The clothes aren't bad though," Chopper pointed out, "Just a little dirty."

"I think that's the problem," Sanji said, watching them—some of the women actually taking out handkerchiefs and using them to cover their mouths. "I normally like a clean surface, but this is ridiculous. It's almost… _too_ clean."

"It's like there's not a speck of dirt anywhere. I mean look," Usopp said, looking around at the streets, and tapping his foot on them as if to prove a point, "The streets here's so clean you can eat off it!"

"Yes, and where do you all think that trash must go?" Robin asked them, her head turning back to the wall that they walked out from.

They all looked at each other. "You mean the Gray Terminal?" Nami asked, suddenly realizing what she was saying.

"Yes," Robin nodded. "I get it now… they throw out what they don't need or want and it all piles up in the Gray Terminal."

"I don't know if I like this place," Chopper said, not liking the snotty looks the nobles were given the cloaked figure, "These people… they're not… I mean they're…" but he trailed off, not sure what he was trying to say. But Brook seemed to understand.

"I agree with you, Chopper-san," Brook said, knowing full well the look that they were giving them. That look as if they knew they were better than anyone else. These people reminded him of someone but he couldn't think of who it was.

"They paid us a good price for that crocodile leather," Sabo's came out from the cloak as they continued on, "More money for our pirate savings."

"I'm hungry!" Luffy whined again.

"Just hold on," Ace answered, "Soon you'll be enjoying some delicious Ramen."

"What is Ramen?" Sabo asked, "Is it really that good?"

"I don't care," Luffy whined, "just hurry up."

After walking a little ways, they had followed them to one of the fanciest looking restaurants any of them had ever seen. It was huge, a good five stories at least and they could tell Ace was smiling when he said, "This is the restaurant."

"Not bad," Sanji said, looking at it. "Wouldn't mind running a business that looks as good as that. If only the customers were better than the kind around here…"

The host inside bowed and welcomed them in, but when he looked up and caught sight of who had just entered, he paled and became somewhat frantic as he tried to get them to leave. "W-wait a minute!" he stuttered out, "You can't come in to my restaurant!"

"Eh? Why can't they go in?" Chopper asked in surprise, "They didn't do anything."

"Does it look like they have money?" Franky asked him.

"I thought that it would've been obvious from the looks they got outside," Robin observed. "But this city values rank and status above anything else. Unless they have money, they aren't welcomed just anywhere. And in a place like this, then anyone who looks like they're broke—even if they're starving—isn't welcomed."

Sanji's eyes narrowed dangerously. What a crap reason to refuse someone food. It's people like them that he couldn't stand… snotty, big-shots who thought that they were better than anyone else… these cooks are all disgraces to chiefs everywhere. As far as he was concerned, anyone who was hungry was a customer—any chief worth his salt would feel the same way.

But before he could begin to rant and rave about this, there was some shifting around under the cloak and Sabo's hand pulled out a round, golden pendant that bore the crest of a daisy.

"I'd like a private room," Sabo said, his voice much deeper than normal.

The host gapped for a moment, eyes wide as he stared at it. "T-that… that's…!" he stuttered before he gave him many low bows and said in an oily voice. "It is an honor that a noble would visit my restaurant. We'll serve you right away!"

"He thought that they were a noble because of that pendant?" Zoro asked suspiciously.

"I'm guessing that emblem is something that only the nobles wear," Robin said, leaning down closer to the crest so that she could get a better look at it before Sabo put it away.

"Hey, that was great," they heard Ace whisper as they followed the man, "Where'd you get it?"

"Oh, ah… it was something I found in the city," Sabo answered unusually apprehensive.

"In other words, he stole it," Usopp answered with a shrug.

Robin didn't say anything to that—she knew it was the most likely reason, but still… she couldn't help but notice the nervousness in Sabo's voice. If he really just stole it, why would he be so worried instead of bragging about it?

Still, she said nothing as she watched the boys being led to a private room somewhere up on the upper levels. The room alone was big enough to hold at least two dozen people and was beautiful carpeted with statues and crystal decoration on the walls with a sparkling chandelier was over their heads as the boys awkwardly sat down at the table.

"Wow!" Chopper called, looking at everything with wide eyes.

"I'll say this much," Sanji said, breathing out some smoke. "They pay be rotten people, but these guys don't spare any expense on décor."

As soon as the host left them, Luffy whined about wanting to come out, but Ace told them both to stay put until after they brought the food. A few minutes later, a waitress came in with the three bowls of Ramen.

"Don't they realize that something's wrong?" Sanji asked as he watched the girl put the bowls down in front of them. "I mean… even if he's hungry, three bowls of Ramen for just one person?"

"I'm guessing that even though these nobles are rich, they don't have too much common sense," Zoro commented with a smirk.

"They probably have others do all the thinking for them," Franky laughed. "They're too busy counting their money to do anything else."

"Here you are, sir, three orders of ramen," the waitress said politely, quickly backing away from them as if she was afraid she would be scolded for staying too long. "Sorry for the wait. Please, enjoy," and then she bowed her way out of the room.

That was when the other two poked their heads out from the cloak.

"So, this is ramen?!" Sabo exclaimed hungrily.

"It looks delicious!" Luffy cried, drooling.

Ace smiled as he threw off the hood. "Come on, eat it," he told them, and they had no problems doing what they were told. And soon they were eating it like they hadn't had food for days.

"Again, these guys need to work on their manners," Sanji said shaking his head in disgust.

Sabo was grinning, a satisfied look on his face. "You're right! It's delicious!"

Brook laughed, "Ah… it does look good… I wish I could have some."

"Too bad it's just a memory," Robin agreed, now starting to feel a little hungry herself.

"I'll be sure to make some when we get out of this place," Sanji promised and Brook, Chopper, Franky, and Usopp all cheered happily before doing a dance around him, chanting 'Ramen! Ramen!'

Soon enough, the boys finished the bowls and Luffy was shouting out, "I want mor…" but before he could finish, the other two clapped their hands over his mouth to keep him quiet before Sabo cleared his throat and called in that deep voice for three more bowls.

"There won't be anything left in the kitchen by the time they're done," Nami said, shaking her head.

"Well, growing boys need food," Robin pointed out.

"It's the restaurant's fault for not realizing what's going on anyway," Zoro said as the boys hid under the cloak again and the waitress came back with another helping. "One person ordering all that ramen? Like I said, they have no brains."

And they watched them eat more and more… they just kept bringing in the food, which was like adding fuel to the fire. The boys were clearly showing this place no mercy.

"How many bowls is it now?" Chopper asked in amazement as they inhaled bowl after bowl.

"I think 23 of them give or take," Usopp said, doing a quick count of the empty bowls. "Come on, you mean to tell me that the kitchen _still_ hasn't they figured out that something's not right?"

The boys ducked back under the cloak, not even done with this next helping when the waitress came back in, gasping for breath, looking as if she had run up here from the kitchen. Not even bothering to hide his abilities, Luffy's arm shot out and took the tray from here. She stood there frozen for a second before she screamed and the door shut behind her.

"Well, if they don't notice something's wrong now, then they are all hopeless," Zoro said as the others laughed.

And that was true. Soon, the door opened, and there stood someone who could only be the owner, "Sir, can you please explain…" But his voice trailed off when he saw the boys there and he yelled out in shock.

"Crap! They found out!" Ace exclaimed with a startled look on his face as he swallowed the last of his food and grabbed his staff.

"Run!" Sabo yelled and then the three of them made a break for the nearest exit, which happened to be the window, and went crashing right through it.

"Wait! What floor are we on?" Nami screamed out.

"Doesn't matter," Sanji laughed as he and Zoro jumped after them.

"Let's go! Yohohoho!" Brook laughed, also taking a jump, and almost flying through the air as Franky picked up the girls—one in each hand—before he also followed, with Chopper and Usopp right behind him. Chopper had turned to his guard point form and had stopped his fall easily while Usopp landed on top of him and bounced down to the ground.

"The thieves are escaping!" the owner shouted from the window, "Someone get them!"

"What a rush!" Franky laughed as he went chasing after the boys. "What fun this is!"

"This explains why Luffy loves to dine and dash," Usopp said, also laughing as they caught up with the boys.

"It's them! Those brats again!" a voice yelled as they ran.

"Again with those three criminals?" an officer yelled. "Why did they let them into the restaurant? Don't run! Someone catch those brats!"

"I guess that this isn't the first time that they did something like this?" Robin asked, now laughing outright.

"Ah, these snobs deserve it," Zoro grinned.

But as they ran, they ended up passing by a finely dressed man with a thin mustache and a top hat, much like Sabo's but with feathers, a flower, and what appears to be a chain-like band on the hat. When the boys ran passed, he stopped dead as he spotted Sabo.

"Sabo?!" he cried in shock, "Is that you, Sabo?! WAIT! So you were alive!"

Sabo stopped dead and turned to stare back at the man with a panicked look on his face.

"They know each other?" Brook asked in surprise.

"Probably some guy he ripped off in the past," Usopp came up with.

"Come back home!" the man yelled.

"Come home?" Nami asked, her eyes widening a little. "What's he talking about? Doesn't Sabo live in the Gray Terminal? Why would he have any connections here?"

Zoro was now looking at this Sabo kid with new interest. Just who was this kid?

Luffy and Ace were probably wondering the same thing and Ace asked, looking back at the man in mild surprise, "Hey, Sabo, that man's calling you."

"Who is he?" Luffy asked, also stopping.

Sabo didn't answer that as he said hurriedly, "He must be mistaking me for someone else. Let's go!"

And without giving them a chance to ask any more questions, he went running off. Ace and Luffy exchanged a surprise look before going after him. "Hey, Sabo!" they both called after him just as the man shouted out for him to stop one more time.

"What's going on here?" Usopp asked, not understanding what just happened as the memory faded away into darkness. "Just who is that Sabo kid? What's his story?"

"If we knew that, don't you think we would've told you?" Sanji asked irritably. Just then, the next memory appeared, and they were standing on a grassy cliff that was outside the forest and had the perfect view of the ocean. The three boys were there, Sabo leaning up against a tree with the other two standing in front of him, apparently wanting some answers.

Luffy was patting his stomach happily as he said, "Since I ate all that delicious Ramen, I'm in a good mood! But a little sleepy…"

"Don't go to sleep now," Ace snapped at him before glancing at Sabo, his arms folded. "Before we do anything else, I think that you need to tell us just what it is you're hiding from us!"

Luffy, who was starting to drift off to sleep, was suddenly wide awake. "Eh? Sabo's hiding something?"

"What's wrong? I don't see what the problem is. I'm not hiding anything!" Sabo exclaimed even as he shifted nervously and couldn't seem to bring himself to look at either of them.

Luffy blinked up at him innocently. "Really?"

"Luffy, you really need to learn how to tell if someone's lying to you," Nami sighed. "He trusts people to easily…"

"That's why he has the rest of us here," Usopp said, punching his own chest proudly.

"And you know more about lying than any of us," Zoro said.

"HEY!" Usopp yelled, smacking his shoulder again.

"It's obvious that you're hiding something!" Ace yelled out angrily. "Spit it out, Sabo! Do you think its okay to keep secrets between us?"

Both boys were standing in front of him, and said together, "Spit it out, Sabo!"

Sabo's blinked and stepped back, still refusing to look at either of them as he said, "I already told you, I'm not hiding anything…"

"You think that he could come up with something more believable than that," Nami sighed. "I mean, it's obvious that he's hiding something."

Luffy and Ace both grabbed Sabo by his collar and shook him.

"Talk, damnit, or I'll make you talk!" Ace yelled and Sabo put his head back as he gasped for air.

"L-lemme go!" Sabo choked out as he shoved their hands away. "Alright! Alright! I'll tell you!"

Ace and Luffy backed off and Sabo leaned back against the tree behind him. He looked between his friends for a moment before turning his gaze to the ground.

That was when they all heard the truth…

"Ehhhhhhh?!" Luffy exclaimed in surprise, "A Noble's son?!"

"You took the words out of my mouth, Luffy," Nami said, her jaw wide open in shock. "He's the son of some rich nobles? Lucky!"

"Who?" Ace and Luffy asked in confusion.

"Me of course!" Sabo yelled.

"So he didn't steal the crest," Brook said as Franky, Usopp and Chopper were staring at Sabo in amazement. "It must really belong to him."

"But why would he be living in the garbage?" Nami asked, not understanding what was going on here at all.

"I think we'll find out," Zoro said. But he was personally thinking that if Sabo had to live with people like the ones they saw in town, then he had a feeling that Sabo chose to leave all that behind.

"But that makes no sense!" Usopp cried out, pointing at him, "Look at him! He looks like he's been living in that garbage for years!"

"Shut up and listen and we might find out," Sanji said, watching how Sabo flinched violently at the word 'noble' as if reminding him of a bad memory.

Ace and Luffy blinked and started picking their noses before saying in unison, "So?"

"You're the ones who were asking!" Sabo yelled, annoyed.

"They may not be related, but they sure act like it," Nami whispered to herself. Could anyone blame them for thinking that these two were really blood brothes?

Sabo sighed, sliding down the tree until he was sitting on the ground. "The truth is," he said softly, "My parents are still alive. I'm not an orphan of the Gray Terminal… and the man we saw today… he's my father."

Ace's eyes went wide but Luffy didn't seem to react at all.

Sabo glance up at them. "I'm sorry for lying to you…" he said sincerely.

Luffy crossed his arms and smiled a little at him. "Well you apologized, so I forgive you."

"Of course he would," Usopp said, smiling fondly, remembering that horrible moment when he left the crew and how he'd been welcomed back after he swallowed his pride and apologized.

"To be honest, I'm surprised," Ace said as he turned and walked a couple steps away from them, "Why would you do all of this if you're a Noble's son?"

"That's what I want to know," Nami said with a frown, puffing out her cheeks with a thoughtful expression. "Aren't his parents rich? Why would he rather live in a place like the Gray Terminal?"

"Remember the people we saw in town?" Robin asked her. "If I had to live with them, I probably would've left too."

"But they're his family aren't they?" Chopper asked softly.

"Let's be quiet and find out," Franky said, watching Sabo gritting his teeth together.

"I had to run away from home!" Sabo confessed loudly and the boys looked at him in surprise.

"I thought so…" Zoro said, feeling new sympathy for the kid.

Sabo sat there, with an angry look on his face as he came clean and told them, "They only care about money and social status… not me."

Nami blinked at that.

"If I don't marry a girl from the royal family," Sabo told them, his eyes narrowed in resentment, "I might as well be crap to them. I had to study everyday… just for _that_. I was always arguing with my parents because of my poor results in school. For that family, I was nothing more than a nuisance."

"They must be some pretty greedy jerks to do that to their own kid," Sanji said frowning, his hatred for these snobby nobles rising.

"To dictate a child's life…" Brook said softly. "That is terrible. They should've been encouraging him to live his life… not to make him live how they want just to make them look better."

"Good for him for leaving then," Usopp said, folding his arms.

Sabo sighed as he stopped shaking from anger and said, "Sorry if I offend you, but even though I had parents… I felt lonely!"

It was that last sentence that caused it to be too much for the more sensitive members of the crew, and they all started crying again.

"The poor guy!" Franky cried a river of tears as the others had tears in their eyes.

"Would you stop crying every few minutes?!" Nami yelled as Zoro, Sanji, and Robin watched the scene sadly.

"The people of Gray Terminal aren't like the Nobles," Sabo said, crossing his arms, "But for me, it was better than to live for decades in that place, with the Nobles."

"It's strange how that is," Robin said frowning. "How it's those with money and power who care more about keeping it all."

"Well, you can't miss something you don't have," Sanji commented.

Robin gave Nami a sideways glance before finishing, "Even with all that money, he wasn't happy. He chose his freedom instead… he could go back at any time, but he rather remain where people truly care about him as a person… not as a tool."

"They must've been bad if Sabo rather live in the junk yard than with his parents," Nami said, thinking of Bell-mère… they may not have had a lot of money, but she knew without the shadow of a doubt that her mother loved both her and Nojiko.

She blinked for a moment before holding her hands folded over her chest, her heart aching as she thought of her mother and sister… suddenly missing them more than ever. If she had to choose… she would rather have grown up poor again if she could be with them. Suddenly, she was starting to see why Sabo must've left.

Ace looked at Sabo with new understanding as he muttered, "Now, I understand."

But just like magic, the gloomy look on Sabo's face disappeared and he jumped up to his feet with an excited grin on his face. "ACE! LUFFY!" he said smiling, taking them all by surprise. "We definitely have to set sail and leave this place someday! I wanna leave and see the world! Everything that it has to offer! And then write a book about my adventures! I don't mind having to study navigation. I'll get stronger and I'll become a pirate!" he called out at last, punching the air with his fists.

"What a nice dream," Robin said with a big smile as the others laughed good-naturedly.

"I think I like this kid," Zoro said as Ace and Luffy grinned with Sabo. He remembered making a similar vow to himself after he first lost to Kuina. He decided that if he wanted to become strong… he would dedicate his life to swordsmanship… and work until the day came that he would become the greatest.

Ace laughed. "I know," he told them as he walked out to the edge of the cliff. He gazed up at the bright blue sky and said determinedly, "You don't need to tell me. I'll be a pirate and I'll fight and fight and fight until I become the most famous! That will be proof that I lived!"

He held the staff up and declared, "I don't care if the world doesn't accept me, no matter how much they hate me, I'll become a great pirate and stand above everyone else! I won't run from anyone, or lose to anyone! I'll make sure the world knows my name!"

"Well, his name certainly went down in history," Robin stated softly and they all glanced at each other nervously, knowing full well that Ace's name will always be remembered… though not in the way that Ace had planned here.

"But what did he mean by 'if the world doesn't accept him'?" Chopper asked slowly.

"It's hard to explain," Robin said, her eyes overshadowed by her bangs, and suddenly very tense.

"Robin-chan?" Sanji asked her, noticing her on edge frame, "What are you…?"

"It's nothing," Robin said firmly, forcing another smile on her face. "It's not important now.

Thankfully, Luffy was giggling. "I see… Right!" he said, running forward to stand by Ace. He raised his fists in the air, took a deep breath and shouted out confidently, "I'M GOING TO BE KING OF THE PIRATES!"

The Straw Hats had heard this line countless times before, but at the same time they couldn't stop the smiles coming to their faces. They each remembered the first time they heard that dream from their captain's mouth, and felt their resolve to fulfill their own dreams increase. Ace and Sabo both stared at him as Luffy burst out laughing… the Straw Hat crew all soon followed suit, unable to stop themselves.

"You're talking nonsense again," Ace sighed, scratching his head in annoyance as Sabo burst out laughing too.

"You're so funny, Luffy!" he cried out. "I can't wait to see what happens in the future with you!"

"The idiot has that effect on everyone," Zoro stated, looking forward to seeing how their dreams came to an end. For the Straw Hat Pirates… they all will continue to pursue their dreams for eternity if they have to… as long as they exist in this world, they will continue to chase.

Sabo suddenly stopped laughing and asked, "Wait, it's okay that we all want to be pirates… but is it okay that we all want to be captain?"

"That would be a problem," Nami smiled.

Ace blinked in surprise as Luffy looked over at him. ""I didn't think about that," Ace stated slowly, "Sabo, I had planned that you'd be my navigator."

Luffy grinned and put his hands on his hips. "You'll be on my ship!" he cried out predictably.

Sabo and Ace turned to Luffy. "I refuse!" they both cried out.

"Well, I often wonder why I joined him," Sanji stated with a shrug. Maybe Ace and Sabo had the right idea…?

"Luffy-san is so much fun, yohohoho," Brook laughed, strumming his guitar again.

"Ehhh?!" Luffy exclaimed, looking disappointed, "Come on, do it! Join my crew! I'll be fun!"

"Now that brings me back," they all said, thinking when Luffy said that to them all. They each had refused at one point or another but Luffy never gave up. They all learned the hard way that Luffy has a bad habit of getting to you in the end. Luffy may be idiot, he may be reckless and high maintenance—often causing them to question their own sanity for joined him in the first place—but still… at the end of the day, they just can't bring themselves to regret joining.

"That will never happen!" Ace said at once.

"Yep, I agree," Sabo nodded and grinned at the outraged look on Luffy's face.

"Yeah, I wonder if I should've said that," Sanji said.

"Be nice," Robin smiled.

"Yeah I guess," Sanji sighed, puffing on his cigarette for a moment before his eyes turned back into hearts and crying out dramatically, "If I hadn't joined, then I never would've been able to sail with you two gorgeous ladies! Oh, my heart aches at the thought of never seeing you two again! That was the most painful thing during our two year separation! But now that we are all reunited, I feel as if those painful memories of hell disappear to the corners of my mind!"

"What mind?" Zoro asked.

Just then, Sanji's eyes turned to anger as he growled softly, "Say that again, Moss Head!"

"I said, what mind?" he repeated.

"I'll kill you!" Sanji yelled, kicking out, which Zoro dodged, going for his swords—before Nami hit them both on the head.

"Would you two knock it off for once?" she yelled at them.

"Sanji-san, just what do you mean by 'hell'?" Brook asked interestedly.

As Zoro gave Nami a death glare, Sanji was on his knees, growling to himself, "I don't even want to think about it, it's the thing of nightmares!"

"But what d'you…?" Chopper began but Luffy had interrupted their conversation.

"What?!" Luffy paused and then tried looked away saying, "Hmph, like I care!"

"What's was that?" Ace asked, his eyebrows raised.

"He's not so good at hiding his emotions," Nami sighed, a little surprise that Luffy let it go so easily. Normally, he went on and on until you just couldn't take him anymore and said yes just to get him to shut up.

Now it was Sabo who was laughing. "You're definitely a funny guy, Luffy!"

The last thing they saw before the image faded were all three boys laughing their heads off as they gazed longingly out at the sea. But when the next memory came back, they were in the forest again; though if they had to guess, it wasn't far off from where they were… they could still hear the ocean waves. Luffy and Sabo were both waiting around a tree stump, and watched as Ace come towards them, carrying a bottle of sake.

"What're they doing now?" Usopp wondered as Sabo put down three red sake glasses, using the stump as a table.

"Looks like they're gonna have a drink," Zoro sighed, suddenly wishing he could have some of what was in that bottle.

"Hard to say what's gonna happen later on," Ace said, walking up to them, dropping the bottle next to the glasses. "But I think it's best that we decide future things in the future. Maybe we'll end up on three different ships."

"I'm guessing that's what happened," Usopp said, remembering how Luffy once said that Ace had set sail to become a pirate a few years before he did.

"Did you steal Dadan's liquor?" Luffy asked him as Ace grinned and opened it with a popping sound.

"Did you know? When men drink together, they become brothers," he said, pouring a generous amount of the drink into each cup.

"They do say that," Sanji said, thinking of when Chief Zeff once mentioned it in passing.

"Brothers? Really?" Luffy asked, a wide, beaming grin on his face, Sabo grinning just as widely next to him.

"We might not be pirates on the same ship, but we'll be united by our bond of brotherhood," Ace said, now smiling so widely that—for that moment—he looked like the man they met in Alabasta. "So this way, no matter what we do or where we are, no one will ever break that bond!" he exclaimed, picking up a cup.

The other two copied him, each taking their own glasses.

"From now on," Ace proclaimed firmly, holding his glass up, "We're brothers!"

The trio clinked their glasses together, Luffy and Sabo affirming Ace's words—and as the sun shone down on the cups, the drink in them seemed to sparkle as they tilted their heads back and drank.

It was too much for them. Franky, Brook, Usopp and Chopper all broke down crying at that.

"That was the most heart-warming thing I've ever seen!" Franky cried out so loudly that the rest of them had to cover their ears. "I love these little guys!" he bawled, twisting a tissue in his giant hands.

"You don't see that kind of bond just anywhere!" Usopp cried out dramatically, "I can't believe we were able to witness such a thing!"

"I wish I had brothers like that!" Chopper bawled out with Franky.

"So touching!" Brook cried out, tears falling from his empty sockets. "I feel as if my heart is being torn in two… though I have no heart of course!"

"We get it!" Nami yelled, her hands over hear ears, as they cried. "I think we all agree that it was special, but you don't need to carry on like this!"

"So Luffy had _two_ brothers… not just one," Robin said softly watching the three boys all laughing together again. "Ace _and_ Sabo…"

"You think that Sabo's out there on the seas somewhere and we might meet him like we did with Ace?" Chopper asked happily. "I'd liked to meet him!"

"Complete approval!" Franky cried out as he blew his nose loudly, and the darkness came back so that the memory faded away. "I'd love to meet this guy…!"

"That seems like a pretty good guess if you ask me," Usopp said, drying his eyes and beaming at Chopper. "Maybe that's why Luffy never told us about them… to make it a surprise when we do meet them."

"_Really?!_" Chopper called out in excitement. "Oh, I can't wait!"

As they all talked happily with each other about meeting Sabo, they failed to notice that some of the more serious members of the crew weren't sharing their enthusiasm. While they did want to meet this second brother of Luffy's… they couldn't help but feel as if they were missing something important here.

After all, some of them had met Ace and seen the brothers together… yet neither one of them ever mentioned another brother… why was that?

**(So now they learned the truth about Sabo—but already they sense that something's wrong. This is the longest chapter yet, and I hope that you all enjoyed it. Next chapter they're going to go a little deeper into the idea of what 'family' is.)**


	7. To Stand On Your Own Feet

**Chapter 7: To Stand On Your Own Feet**

The image faded and they were left alone in the darkness once again—but they had all fallen silent as they thought over everything they had seen here. Family… what a strange word that was for all of them. They all knew what it was like to have their own family… though of course they weren't actually related…

They all knew what it was like to have family… and each one of them was lost in their own heads at the thought of the families they left behind—wondering just how each one of them was doing right now.

But before they could dwell too much on their loved ones, they were suddenly back, and it looked as if they were standing in some dark alley of Edge Town. Sabo was up against the wall, with a gang of thugs cornering him, all of them were smirking as they advanced on him slowly.

"This doesn't look so good!" Usopp said worriedly. "What's going on? Why's he taking them on alone?"

"Don't worry," Franky said, smiling. "These guys are pathetic! Our boys can take them down easy."

"What boys?" Brook asked, looking around, "I only see one."

"Sabo," the mugger up front said with a rather evil grin, "Who gave you permission to enter our territory?"

"His… territory?" Nami repeated, not understanding.

"In the rough parts of any town, there are always those who claim parts of it as theirs," Franky answered, having years of experience of guarding his own home turf from pirates. "And they attack anyone stupid enough to enter it."

Just then, Robin noticed something moving above them. When she looked up, she spotted two small figures looking down at the scene, and she couldn't stop the smirk.

Sabo suddenly smirked, as if he was the one in charge here. "Your territory?" he repeated with that grin. "You guys are so full of it! Talk is cheap! Hurry up and bring it on if you don't want to be beaten."

The man in front sneered. "Fine!" he said, "You asked for it!"

They all ran towards him, one man declaring, "But we ain't going easy on ya because you're a kid!"

"Which is why he didn't come alone," Robin smiled as she looked up above her to see two figures there. Ace jumped from the rooftop of the building above them, holding onto Luffy's foot, who was clinging to the edge so that his leg stretched out for Ace to swing down with the metal staff.

"Not bad," Zoro said, watching as one of the thug's heads collided with Ace's staff and fell to the ground with a loud 'thud'.

"That kid!" one of them yelled in a stunned voice before he held up a knife.

"They should pay attention," Sanji commented with a shake of his head at Sabo, who was now grinning and held up his staff. "This is what happens when you get cocky."

"Pay attention!" Sabo called with a grin and taking him out with the pipe. At the same time, Ace let go of Luffy's leg so that when it shot back like the rubber band and the little guy was thrown off the roof.

"He had so much trouble with his powers didn't he?" Brook asked as he watched Luffy falling back down towards the fight. "Yohoho… it's good to know that he can control it now."

Luffy then fell to the ground, luckily having his fall broken when he landed on one of thugs before he jumped up and charged in to fight with his brothers.

"YEAH!" Chopper called out watching them fight as Franky and Usopp cheered on. Zoro was watching with interest. He had always known that Luffy's fighting style was completely improvised; it followed no particular code of honor, and so if necessary, he will fight dirty. For someone with no formal training, he had always wondered where he learned to fight… now he knew.

It was really quite entertaining watching the brothers fight—the funniest moment was when one guy tried to punch Luffy, only to dent in his face. Ace and Sabo both were able to round them all up and left them as bleeding lumps on the ground until their faces looked like have half eaten velvet cake slices. Just then, they heard a whistle being blown from somewhere, along with shouting and people running towards them.

Ace looked up, halfway through beating up one of the thugs. "Here comes the sheriff," he said to himself as he dropped the man and called to his brothers, "Let's get out of here!"

Luffy stumbled around, still trying to get his face back to normal so that he could see, while the other two already climbed up wall—Ace sat up on top and called, "Luffy! Hurry up! This way!"

Luffy turned around in the direction of Ace's voice and shot his arm out randomly; Ace pulled him up onto the wall, just as his face popped back to normal.

"It's back!" Luffy cried out happily and soon they bolted the street just as the sheriff and his men showed up. The Straw Hats all laughed as they went running after them, wondering just what was going to happen next… they didn't stop running until they were far away from the walls and back near the forest. As they all caught their breath, the boys were standing up on a hill that overlooked the city in the distance.

"It's getting late!" Sanji said, pointing to the sun that was covering everything in colors of orange, gold, and red. He put a hand on his stomach and suggested, "Let's get deer for dinner!"

"Yeah!" Luffy yelled out excitedly. "I love venison! Let's go hunting!" and then he went running off with the other two right behind him, yelling at him to wait.

"What?" Chopper cried out in panic. "He really does like venison?"

"Don't worry, Chopper," Robin smiled, patting his shoulder. "This all happened a long time ago, remember? They wouldn't eat you… though they might've gone after some of your relatives…"

"Robin," Nami scolded softly, wondering just why she loved this morbid thinking of hers.

"He did try to eat me when we first met," Chopper whispered, turning a little blue in the face before glancing nervously at Sanji. "And so did you!"

Sanji laughed as he held his hands up as everything around them went dark to go to the next memory. "Now, now… we didn't know that you were so cool at the time."

At that, Chopper blushed and said as he danced around, "You're just trying to get on my good side, it won't work! Praising me won't make me forgive you, you jerk!"

Next thing they knew was that they were standing back in the bandit's hut with a giant plate full of meat, right off the bone.

"Oh, this is gonna be good," Zoro said looking at the hungry looks on everyone's faces and leaned back to watch. And like he said, it was sheer chaos as the boys and bandits all fought tooth and nail over the food. It was like watching a bunch of wild animals fighting over the newest kill. The three brothers were there, and showed no mercy as they launched themselves onto it—they didn't care who they sent flying as they ate as much as they could. Dadan just sat in the back of the room as they fought, drinking sake before the food that came flying over to hit her in the head.

Finally, she had enough, screaming out and grabbed the boys before she threw them into the bathhouse. "And don't come out until you count to ten thousand!" she yelled at them, slamming the door behind her as she spun around to look at the main room. It was a complete mess and all the bandits were laying there bruised and beaten while there were sounds of fighting and laughter coming from the bathhouse.

"I can't help but feel bad for them…" Nami laughed. "Having to deal with all three of them? It's a wonder that they didn't throw them out long before now… their sanity could be at stake!"

"I think it's sweet," Robin smiled.

"Honestly!" Dadan said angrily, looking at the mess. "Why is it that we have to do a major housecleaning after _every_ meal? I'm going to kick those brats out at any cost."

"Looks like she's at her wits end," Usopp said as they watched them get brooms and mops out.

"Maybe if they thought to learn some manners, then they might not be making such a mess," Sanji suggested as they watched them clean. After an hour of it, the room was spotless and they were all looking at it with satisfied expressions…

"Enjoy it while you can," Brook laughed knowingly, for no sooner did they finish up did…

"Luffy! You bastard!" Ace's voice yelled and the three boys, dripping wet with towels came running in, leaving water everywhere.

"Aren't they cute?" Nami said, watching them run around, leaving wet footprints all over.

Robin smiled. "It is sweet isn't it?"

"B-Boss?" Dogra whispered Dadan, as the boys kept playing.

Dadan's face held no emotion, she just held that same forced smile on her face, but her hands were shaking so badly that she ended up snapping the broom in half.

"Oh, that's not good," Franky said warily.

"It's just water…" Usopp offered at once, noticing the twisted gleam in her eyes as she looked at the boys. "It's not like its mud or anything…"

"I think that she's at her limits…" Zoro said with a yawn. "There's only so much you can take from someone before you snap."

"Yeah, and it doesn't look like it will take much more to drive her over the deep end," Sanji said as they watched them get to bed. The bandits were all out cold by the time that they found their blankets, but the three boys, who they followed to the loft where they had made their bedroom, were still up and looked ready for action. They all stood apart from each other, their fists held in front of them—looking ready for another fight.

"Don't they know when to call it a day?" Nami asked with a sigh.

"Last training session for today!" Ace confirmed to them both.

"And I'll win!" Luffy declared holding his fists in the air.

"You never learn," Sabo laughed at him.

"Nope, he doesn't," they all said.

"I don't think anything less than a beating can get him to learn his lesson," Nami sighed, "And even then, that rarely works."

"Here we go!" Ace yelled, jumping forward like a jungle cat and soon it was an all-out brawl which only ended when Luffy was smacked right through the floor—which resulted in a loud scream of pain from Dadan's voice.

"Ouch…" Usopp hissed, when he looked down to see what happened. "EHHHHH! He landed right on Dadan! That had to hurt!"

"For who?" Sanji asked, looking down the hole with Ace and Sabo. "Him or Dadan?"

"Luffy?" Ace yelled through the hole. "Are you alive down there?"

"What a crappy floor," Sabo commented.

"I agree with you," Franky nodded, shaking his head at the hole. "Whoever built this house didn't do such a SUPER job with the floors."

"You bastards!" Luffy yelled up at Ace and Sabo, completely unharmed.

"HEY!" Dadan screamed, at all three of them.

"Should we go to sleep?" Ace asked Sabo quickly.

"Yeah…" Sabo agreed, and just like that, after Luffy jumped right back up to them, all three collapsed on top of each other like a great big nest. Nami and Robin both laughed at how sweet that was as the memory shifted again.

"Poor Dadan," Usopp said shaking his head. "You really have to hand it to her for putting up with all this."

The next memory appeared, and they saw that it was bright and sunny outside through the cracks in the room, but all three boys were still there fast asleep until Dogra came in and woke them up, telling Luffy that there were some people here to see him.

"Oh, please don't let it be Garp," Usopp begged as Luffy who came to the door, rubbing his eyes sleepily. But when he saw who it was, he was awake at once and let out an excited cry as he ran out. When the Straw Hats stuck their heads out to see who was waiting for Luffy outside, Chopper let out an thrilled cry as they all smiled—or in Sanji's case, started to drool as heart replaced his eyes.

For standing there were Makino and the Mayor.

"Makino!" Luffy cried, running forward to hug her.

Makino laughed as she hugged him tightly in return. "Luffy!"

"She came to see him," Chopper said happily as Makino returned the hug. "I'm glad I got to see her again."

"Yohoho, she is a truly lovely lady," Brook said earnestly, "Such a kind woman is so rare these days!"

"Oh, my dear, Makino!" Sanji said, skipping over to her, and kneeling down in front of her. "Though we are separated through time… I feel as if we are meant to be together. Wait for me my dear… wait for me!"

Nami rolled her eyes. "Ok, ignoring Lover boy over there. But it was kind of her to visit… and the Mayor too! I'm sure that it meant a lot to Luffy."

"You look great!" the Mayor smiling, "It's been six months so we came to see how you were doing."

"Yohohoho, time sure flies when you're watching memories," Brook laughed.

Luffy grinned at the older man. "Hey, Mayor!" he cried happily.

"But don't tell Garp-san," Makino said with a wink, putting a finger to her lips, silently telling him to be quiet about this. Luffy merely beamed up at her as he continued to hug her.

"Oh, he's lucky…" Sanji sighed, wishing that he could hug her too.

"So you're really living with bandits," the mayor observed, looking at Dadan with suspicion.

"Of course he would disapprove," Zoro said, having gotten that feeling from him when he first saw him.

"Well, a normal person would never think to leave their grandkids with bandits," Nami pointed out.

"You got a problem?" Dadan growled at him, having come out of nowhere—dark bands under her eyes showed that she hadn't slept right last night.

"Yes! A big one!" he snapped back, clearly unafraid of her. "You're a bandit, don't give me attitude!"

"What'd you say?!" she yelled, now angry. "Are all people from Fushia Village annoying?"

"I'm starting to think that," Zoro commented, "But you gotta hand it to them. These two are tough coming here on their own…"

While the Mayor and Dadan continued to argue, Makino clapped her hands together with a wide smile, as she talked with Luffy. "I have some presents for you!" she said, kneeling down to reach into a basket that she brought with her. "I assume Garp-san wouldn't think about these things…" she then pulled out a yellow t-shirt with a purple star on it and held it up, "Ta-da! New clothes!"

"Wow, great!" Luffy exclaimed, with stars in his eyes as he hugged her tightly.

"Makino-san is so kind!" Brook sighed wistfully, tears in his eye sockets. "I can't wait to meet her in person… I'll ask if I can see her…"

Robin suddenly caused a hand to grow out of his back and cover his mouth. "I really wouldn't finish that if I were you," she told him in a friendly warning.

"Seriously though, I never thought he would be happy to see clothes," Nami said, watching Luffy pull off his old tank top and pull the shirt on eagerly. "Though it's true… I doubt that Garp would be bothered to think that kids need new clothes too…"

"It's the thought that counts," Usopp said as Sanji fell to his knees, now wishing that he could have something from Makino as well. "I mean, after having the same kind of clothes for months, you would want to change."

Makino giggled happily. "I'm glad you like them! I just need to adjust the length so… I'll need you guys too," she said looking past Luffy at the house where Ace and Sabo were standing in the doorway, clearly hiding, watching almost jealously.

"And she even has some for them," Chopper said joyfully, stars in his own eyes as he looked at her. The two boys looked startled as if they couldn't believe that she would think about them, especially since they never met her before. "She's so nice! I really, _really_ want to meet her someday!"

"Okay?" Makino asked with that same smile. Sabo hesitated, but soon he came running out to meet her with a big smile as Ace still stood there, tense as ever.

"You too," Makino encouragingly as Luffy admired his new clothes and Sabo was pulling off his dirty blue coat.

Reluctantly, Ace walked over to them, hands tucked into his pockets and a little red in the face as she adjusted the sizes. As Luffy and Sabo were finished, she had Ace stand there as she held up the shirt to make sure she got the length right.

"I heard that Ace-kun was mischievous," she said, smiling at him brightly. "But you seem like a good boy."

Ace turned a bright red and looked away. "N-no, I'm not…"

"Awwww!" Nami laughed. "There's a first! He's blushing!"

"How could he not with such a kind gift from a beautiful lady?" Brook asked enviously as Sabo and Luffy laughed at Ace.

"It's hard not to like her," Robin smiled as Chopper giggled at the red on Ace's cheeks.

"He's so shy!" Sabo whispered to Luffy.

Luffy then called, "You're blushing, Ace!"

"He's going to make them pay for that later," Zoro said knowingly.

"You jerks!" Ace yelled, holding a fist up.

"Oh hey," Makino said hurriedly, "You can't move!"

Ace stood still, but he warned them clearly, "I'll get you guys later."

The two just laughed—it was so sweet that the rest of the Straw Hats couldn't help but laugh along with them. They watched the following memories of the boys spending the day with Makino and the mayor. They talked about what life was like living with the bandits and how they roamed and hunted in the forest all day. Makino merely smiled at them as the Mayor shook his head incredulously—as if unable to believe that anyone could leave a bunch of kids to run wild like this. When the sun began going down, Makino headed back to the hut and made dinner for everyone.

"I hope you like it!" she said, with a beautiful set out that made some members of the crew drool over it in longing.

"I'm so hungry," Usopp whispered, almost crying as he looked at the food, his fingers twitching slightly as he reached out, "It's like I can almost reach out and touch it…"

Chopper reached over to try and grab a plate, only for his hoof to go through it and almost ended up crying as Brook said, "I'm so hungry, I fear I'll be nothing but bones! Ah! Though I'm already nothing but bones! Yohohoho!"

"She's beautiful _and_ can cook," Sanji cried out, hearts in his eyes at Makino. "Oh, she and I are just the perfect match for each other!"

"Would you shut up about that?" Nami snapped at him in annoyance.

"I wish I could eat some of that," Usopp said with his mouth watering, his mind still on the food. "How long are we going to watch them eat?"

"I'm more surprised that no one's been killed yet over dinner," Zoro said, surprised at how much calmer and well-mannered the bandits were here.

"Well, I guess that they want to behave for Makino and the Mayor until they leave… after all, she did make that food for them," Franky laughed before he noticed that something felt wrong. He looked up to see that there was a large shadow right behind Luffy and Ace.

"Meals should be good on the ship," Sabo said as he inhaled the food. "I'm gonna get the best cook first thing when I go out to sea!"

"I'm gonna become a pirate before you do so just forget it," Ace informed him.

"NO!" Luffy exclaimed, standing up proudly. "_I'm_ going to become a pirate first!"

Just then the rest of the Straw Hats noticed the figure as well and slowly paled when they realized what—or rather _who_—it was.

"Is that?" Chopper whispered in a squeaky voice, obviously terrified at what was obviously about to happen.

"Ah huh," Nami whispered back, feeling a slight sweat on her forehead, this couldn't end well.

When the bandits finally spotted dark shadow of the man behind them, they spit out their drink and backed away as far as they could go.

Luffy and Ace blinked, clearly not understanding why they looked so scared.

"What's he doing here?" Zoro asked as Garp cleared his throat so that Ace and Luffy looked a little sick before they slowly turned around to see Garp's terrifying face tower above them.

"OH, CRAP!" Usopp panicked, his hands gripping his hat. "IT'S GARP!"

"This can't be good," Sanji said, looking a little blue in the face.

"You're still spouting crap like that?!" Garp growled, and the boys both spit out their drinks as they moved back as fast as they could before Garp yelled out, "Can't you both understand that you must become Navy soldiers?!"

And then he punched both boys until they fell back onto the floor with large bumps on their heads.

"What did he expect to happen anyway?" Nami asked deadpanned. "He left them with bandits after all? And I don't think that hitting them is the best motivation."

"I guess even someone as strong as Ace is scared of something," Franky whispered, staring at Garp in horror.

"Can you blame him?" Zoro asked, as Garp towered over everyone else. "This guy really _is_ a monster."

"Dadan?!" Garp yelled.

"Yes, Garp-san!" she asked, only to be hit as well and fell back like they did.

"You're not educating the brats well," he yelled at her.

"It's taking all her energy just to stay sane with them," Sanji said angrily. Now he wasn't fond of Dadan, but he couldn't stand by to watch anyone abuse a woman like this.

Makino was behind them, her hands over her mouth as Sabo sat there, staring terrified up at Garp. "He's Garp?" he asked himself in a croak. "He's Luffy's and Ace's grandfather?"

"I think that's the common reaction," Franky nodded with a gulp.

"Squirt," Garp said turning his attention to Sabo, "you mentioned something about going out to sea too…?"

"If he wants to live, I suggest that he kept his mouth shut," Usopp whispered as Chopper hid behind Zoro again.

"He's scary!" the reindeer whispered.

"He's not a squirt!" Luffy exclaimed, defending Sabo at once—but they all knew at once that this wasn't good for the boy in question. Standing in front of Sabo, Luffy explained that he was their brother and they all promised that they would become pirates someday.

The crew shook their heads in sympathy for Sabo.

"The poor guy," Zoro sighed. "Now, Garp is going to _'train'_ him as well."

"He has such a big mouth," Ace grumbled from the floor as he rubbed his sore head.

"One of his biggest problems," Nami agreed with a nod.

"Oh?" Garp said, cracking his knuckles, "That means there are three brats who want me to give them a workout!"

The trio of brothers blinked and started sweating as Garp gained a sadistic grin. Seeing him raise his fist was enough for them all to start screaming and make a break for it.

"I can't say that I blame them," Usopp yelled over the screams. "I wouldn't be ashamed if I ran!"

And that was when they saw Garp turn his idea of 'training' onto the boys. The Straw Hats were standing far back, all of them looking sick and wincing as they watched them have their faces turned to mush and slammed through rocks and trees.

"Forget everything I said about those two being monsters!" Usopp cried out as the shockwave of one of Garp's punches knocked over a tree and then grabbing Sabo so that he could spin him around like a top in his hands. "Garp's the biggest monster of them all!"

"L-Luffy's grandpa is s-scary," Chopper cried again, still hiding.

"Scary nothing," Sanji said, looking a little green as he watched Garp dust off his hands and headed back to the house, just leaving all three boys bleeding and broken on the ground. "He's a freaking lunatic!"

"That's it for today!" Garp yelled to them, a hand raised in farewell. "I'll be harsher tomorrow. You can't drop dead yet!"

"They'll be killed if this goes on any longer!" Chopper cried out in panic. As all three boys dragged themselves back to their feet and went stumbling back to the house so that they could bandage up their wounds.

They went back to their loft as Sabo pulled out bandages and wrapped them up.

"I'm starting to get used to seeing them all wrapped up like that," Usopp said as Ace cautiously opened the door to peek out to see Garp was punched out drunk with all the other bandits.

"I take it back," Nami whispered with a gulp. "I rather live with bandits than with Garp."

"If nothing is done, that old man will kill us tomorrow," Ace hissed to the other two.

Sabo nodded, looking scared and pale at the thought. He whispered back, "Even if we survive, he'll keep at it until we give up our dream."

"I don't want to die!" Luffy exclaimed in panic.

"Well then…" Ace said, turning a mischievous grin to them both. "It's time to make up our minds, brothers!"

"Mm? What is Ace-san planning?" Brook asked, head tilted to the side curiously.

"He's suggesting that they leave, what else?" Sanji asked.

"Really, that is their only choice if they want to live," Zoro added as the memory changed again so now they were standing up on a small hill during an early morning. If becoming pirates was really an ungrantable wish in Garp's eyes… they were all challenging him.

"Where are they now?" Chopper asked, looking around for the familiar faces.

"There!" Usopp said, spotting the three boys running as fast as they could up the hill.

"We got away successfully!" Luffy called happily, turning and jumping for joy.

"They're not coming after us?" Sabo asked anxiously, "Dadan and the others?"

"Wouldn't they be happy that their troubles are gone with them?" Franky asked.

"I'm not so sure, Yohohoho," Brook said, turning his head back in the direction that the boys came from. "They've been there for a long time… people tend to grow on you after awhile. Even if they drive you crazy."

"Well, Dadan sure seemed willing to throw them out before," Chopper pointed out.

Robin just stood there smiling. "I'm sure we'll find out sooner or later."

Ace turned back to look down the pathway before a smirk came over his face. "I can tell that she's happy now that her troubles have gone away."

But just like that, it started to rain and they bolted for the nearest bit of shelter that they could find, which happened to be under the roots of a large and thick tree.

"Let's lay low here until the rain stops," Sabo said as they watched the rain.

Luffy was giggling to himself. "This is exciting!"

"Of course he would find this all fun for him," Nami smiled.

"Yohoho! Luffy-san knows how to enjoy life!" Brook said happily as the boys soon began to doze off and the pouring rain slowly turned to a light drizzle. As they slept, Nami looked up at the sky, wondering just what they were going to do.

"We're so occupied watching all this, we haven't even thought of how to get out of here," she said suddenly. They all looked up her, and some of them were looking ashamed at the thought.

"There has to be some way to stop watching all this," Usopp said half-heartedly. "After all, I wouldn't be happy if you guys were watching my memories… I mean…" he added, "Not that I don't trust you guys but…"

"The past is the past," Robin nodded, pulling out her book from her bag again as she looked at the cover again grimly. "We should just leave it like that. But there's nothing written in here about memories except that Luffy must've agreed to share them…"

"But they don't seem that bad," Franky said, watching the three all curled up with each other, "They're SUPER sweet!"

"But that's the problem," she said frowning. "While I agree that these memories are all special and happy, they are for _now_. We don't know everything that happened in Luffy's past. But Luffy _does_ know… and especially after what happened to Ace two years ago… these might be hard for him to see… if he's seeing them too."

They all froze as they remembered that Ace was killed during the Whitebeard War.

"You don't think…?" Usopp asked with a gulp, "We'll see _that_ do you?"

"If we keep watching and his memories keep going on about his life, then I'm sure that, sooner or later, we could end up seeing it," Robin answered sadly.

"If that's the case," Nami said, turning pale. "We really _need_ to find a way out of here before that happens! I don't want to see that!"

"If Luffy could manage to bear all this on his own, then we can handle it all," Zoro said softly. "But I agree, it's best that we start thinking of a way out of here before we see something that we're gonna regret."

"I already regret it," Chopper said with a sniffle. "I still remember hearing about what happened to Ace. I didn't know anything about a war until I read the paper! I can't tell you all how bad I felt! Even now, just thinking about how hard it must've been for Luffy… it feels like my heart was being torn apart!"

"I think we all feel the same," Sanji sighed, he remembered with shame about how he was brainwashed by those stupid Okama's and how it was only after reading about the War of the Best did he snap out of it. "It was the same for me… I was trapped in hell and it was only when I read what was in the paper did it put everything into perspective for me."

"I felt so terrible," Nami confessed miserably. She was so scared imagining just how much pain Luffy must've been in—just how hard he must've been taking it all. Ever since she left Cocoyashi, he was always there. She never really thought of it before, but without her noticing it, Luffy served as a kind of emotional pillar for her. He was always there when she needed him to be… and even when she didn't. She never really thought about how she, how they all, depended on him. It was selfish, but it had been so hard for her to know that he must've been in so much pain.

"The one time that he needed us to be there, we weren't," Usopp said, sitting down on the ground, watching the boys all continue to sleep. "We were all safe and sound while he stormed Impel Down, and then went straight off to Marineford only to watch Ace die. Man, I still can't believe that he did that… I mean, when he first mentioned how he almost died in the prison, I thought that he was joking… but he…"

"Wait, what do you mean by Impel Down?" Franky asked in confusion.

"It was right after Sanji almost bled to death on Fishman Island," Chopper said, coming forward and speaking for him. "I noticed that there was something wrong with Luffy's arm, and when I checked it out, I realized that it was because he got poisoned by that octopus Fishman that Zoro beat up."

"Poisoned?" Robin asked in surprise.

"Yeah," Chopper said hurriedly. "But Luffy was just fine! In fact, if I didn't say anything, I don't think he would've ever noticed it! Luffy now has some really powerful anti-bodies in his blood to fight off poison! When I asked if he had been poisoned before, he said that he almost died from it in Impel Down!"

"He really broke into the world's most feared prison all for a chance to save his brother?" Brook asked in awe.

"It's just something that Luffy would do," Sanji whispered. "When someone he cares about is in real danger, he no longer cares about himself… and he will practically destroy his own body to save that person. It really doesn't surprise me that Luffy would go through all that just for Ace."

"I don't even wanna know what went on in that place," Nami said at once with a shudder. "They say that Impel Down is a living hell! A place filled with horrors and you're subjected to the worst kinds of torture imaginable before you're led to your execution!"

Zoro looked down, having not said a word at all—feeling nothing but shame. He was in a different position than the rest of them, as he was the first person to join the crew… he felt responsible for everyone else when the captain wasn't there. Luffy always tried so hard to protect everything… he didn't envy Luffy's job as captain one bit…

After all, all that _he_, himself, had to do was work out and train until trouble popped up and then fight. But the captain must always remain on guard to protect the crew. He thought back to Thriller Bark and the sacrifice that he was so close to making that day… how he offered up his head to Kuma. How he survived all that was still a mystery to him, but still, he didn't regret his actions at all that day…

Back then, he had made up his mind that if he couldn't even protect his captain's dream, then he could never achieve his own. It was the first time that he was willing to die for anything but his own ambitions…

He glanced up, and looked long and hard at the child that would one day grow up to become the feared 'Straw Hat Luffy'. Zoro just couldn't help but remember the day then he and Luffy met for the first time and how he had threatened to kill him if anything got between him and his dream… he smiled sadly.

Just when did that all change?

Robin stepped forward. "We just have to hope for the best, and start thinking of ways out of here. Maybe if we could figure out how we got here in the first place, it would help."

But even as they really began to think about how to get out of here, Sabo was stirring. He opened his eyes sleepily and gazed around at the outside world as he crawled out of the roots. He looked around, obviously wondering what to do before looking up at the tree. It had been hard to tell with all the rain, but now they saw that it was one of the largest trees they'd seen yet in this forest.

Sabo frowned as if thinking something over before he beamed at an idea. Reaching into his pocket to pull out a scrap of paper, and after pulling off some bark from a tree, he started to draw on it.

"What is he doing?" Brook asked, trying to lean over to see the scribbles.

Soon though, Ace and Luffy were also waking up and he called them over to him, holding up a crud drawing. "Here!" he said, practically beaming in excitement. "Look at this!"

"What is it?" Luffy asked, rubbing his eyes as Sabo put down the paper for them all to see.

"It's as bad as one of Luffy's drawings!" Chopper pointed out.

"What's it supposed to be?" Usopp asked, now confused.

"I designed our hideout!" Sabo said proudly. "We can't sleep outdoors forever right? So we're going to build it right here!"

"A hideout…?" Luffy repeated before his eyes got wide and he cried out, "HOW COOL!"

But Ace asked him, "What about the materials?"

"We've got tons you-know-where," Sabo smiled.

"Where?" Usopp and Chopper both asked baffled.

"YOW! The Gray Terminal where else?!" Franky asked, posing. "That place is SUUUPPPPEERR for building! You can get anything you need there!"

And so they did.

The Straw Hats all watched with bright interest as the boys worked. They went back to the Gray Terminal and found supplies—like wood, rusty nails, ropes, and a collection of scrap metal—before dragging them back to the tree in a makeshift cart. They watched as the boys passed the wood up the tree and began building. The next few memories were of them building, what had to be a treehouse… and it was entertaining to say the least. The whole time they were trying to build something even remotely stable, they were always in danger of falling off or arguing about where something should go.

And when they were done during the day, at night they would make a small fire on the ground and laugh around it before they would crawl underneath the roots and fall back asleep.

"Yo!" Franky said, watching Luffy hammering up a wall. "His hammering skills suck almost as bad as yours long-nose!"

"At least when he hits his thumb, it doesn't hurt," Nami added as she watched Luffy pull his thumb back out from under the hammer.

"Would you all stop picking on me?!" Usopp yelled.

"They're so cute…" Robin giggled happily.

As they watched, they soon realized that it looked a great deal like part of a ship—they even put in a ships wheel like the one they had on the Sunny. Once they were done here, they then climbed up to some of the higher branches to add what looked like a crow's nest, connected by a rope ladder.

Once it was finished, Franky whistled in an impressed way before saying, "Not bad for a few kids."

"They even have a pirate flag!" Usopp said and they watched as they attached a flag with the crossbones with the letters ASL printed on it.

"Oh, wow!" Chopper called out, looking at it with stars in his eyes. "I wish I had something that cool when I was little! But what does the ASL stand for?"

"For their names," Robin explained, "Ace, Sabo, and Luffy…"

"Oh, I knew that!" Chopper said at once.

"Didn't you have something like that when we met?" Nami asked Usopp.

"Ah… the Usopp Pirates!" Usopp said fondly. "That name takes me back… Now there was a crew made of the bravest of men! I wonder how they're doing now…?"

"You mean those three little kids?" Nami asked, her eyebrows raised.

Usopp glared at her and had begun telling her off when the boys were standing back so that they could really admire their work.

"Awesome!" Luffy said, smiling wide, "It looks just like your design, Sabo!"

"Really?" Usopp said with another sweatdrop. "It looked like a nothing but squiggles to me."

"Be nice," Franky said smiling up at it. "What matters is that it looks sturdy. They did a pretty good job on it despite the fact that they're hammer skills suck."

Sabo grinned as he rubbed his nose with his finger and said proudly, "Great work if I may say so myself." Then he noticed Ace was frowning a little. "What's wrong, Ace?"

"This is a hideout," he said, looking back at him with a rather mischievous grin. "So wouldn't it be good to set up some traps?"

"Traps?" Luffy asked in surprise.

"Not a bad idea," Sabo said, his hands on his hips as he thought. "Alright, I'll think about it!"

"Seriously? Traps?" Nami questioned exasperated.

"Well, with Bluejam after them, I think it would be a good idea," Robin pointed out as they climbed the tree. "Not sure what they have in mind, but anything is better than nothing."

As Chopper put his hooves up, attempting to climb the tree after the boys, the memory shifted a little. It didn't go all black like it usually did, instead it was as if they were on some kind of moving platform and they were suddenly soaring up to the tree so that they could see.

"WHOA!" Usopp cried, grabbing hold of Sanji's arm, "WHAT'S GOING ON NOW?"

"I guess since we can't climb the tree anyway, we're getting a bird's eye view of it," Robin answered as Nami screamed in shock and moved back closer to her.

"THIS IS AWESOME!" Chopper yelled in amazement.

"BUT HOW'RE WE DOING THIS?" Usopp cried out.

"Don't know, but it is handy," Sanji commented as they slowed down and stopped so that they were right outside the tree house. The first thing they saw was Ace spinning the wheel around all the way as Luffy climbed out the window and went straight up the Crow's nest.

"Yeah!" Luffy called down to them excitedly, "We have a view of the Gray Terminal, Fushia Village, and the ocean!"

"That's not so uncommon is it?" Sabo called up. "We are on an island after all and this is the biggest tree here isn't it?"

"It's nice to see them from up here!" Luffy called, as if they just didn't get it. Curious, both boys climbed up to see what he meant, and the Straw Hats also followed suit until they were standing right outside Crow's Nest—supported on nothing but air.

"This is freaking me out," Usopp whispered, now hanging off Franky like a monkey, looking down to the ground—as if expecting to fall at any moment.

"So surprising!" Brook said in wonder, looking around and lightly tapping his foot beneath him. Though they could hear the slight tap of his foot hitting a floor, they were still floating on nothing but air.

"LOOK!" Franky suddenly cried out and they looked up to see what it was.

"Breathtaking," Nami said, a wide smile on her face as she stared around her.

"WOW!" Chopper yelled, mirroring how she felt. There was the village that Luffy had come from on the far left side—and their view stretch over the forest and ended on the right where all of Goa Kingdom was… but in front of them… was the perfect view of the ocean, seeing far into the distance, over the horizon.

Ace was grinning from ear to ear as he said, "You're right! It is different!"

They all stared out at the ocean with longing expressions, and they could tell that they just couldn't wait until they set sail. The wind blew their hair around and a seagull flew right passed them as they stood there enjoying it.

"Luffy!" Ace yelled, startling them all as the boys jumped down to the main house. "There's a tailwind! Set the sails!"

"What are they talking about?" Chopper asked confused. "There aren't any sails…"

Robin laughed in understanding as she explained, "They're pretending they're on a real pirate ship."

"Aye!" Luffy shouted as he slid down the ladder to where the ship's wheel was.

Sabo was laughing. "Advance to the treasure!" he called.

Ace was still in the Crow's nest, pretending to hold up a telescope as he looked around and he called, "An enemy off the bow and the starboard side! It's Bluejam's ship! Prepare for action!" He then gasped dramatically, "They've started shooting! Take evasion action!"

Luffy was up at the ships wheel and Sabo said, "Luffy, hard port!"

"Yeah! I got it!" Luffy yelled.

"No!" Sabo said in annoyance, "You're supposed to 'steady' at times like this."

"Oh, right," Luffy said hurriedly—as if he knew that all along, "I got it."

"This is so cute," Nami giggled. "Oh, why couldn't Luffy stay cute like that?"

"What do you mean by cute?" Sanji asked, his eyes narrowing, now getting tired of all the 'cute remarks' they've been making.

"Everyone's cute when they're kids aren't they?" Nami asked him with a smile.

Sanji just looked away, furiously muttering to himself, "Man, what do kids have that _I_ don't?"

Sabo then folded his arms, and repeated, "Luffy, hard port!"

"Hard port! Steady!" he said at once and then he turned the wheel all the way.

Ace held up his pipe staff like a sword and cried out, "Let's fight hand-to-hand! Lay aboard!" He then slid down to join his brothers as he finished, "Wait for them to come aboard!"

"I got it!" Sabo laughed, holding up an imaginary gun.

Luffy held his fists as Ace added, "Don't cry, Luffy."

"SHUT UP!" he called back and the Straw Hats all laughed as they began their imaginary battle with Bluejam's crew.

"It really is something special isn't it?" Robin laughed.

It finally ended when Ace hit a pumpkin with his staff and held it above his head shouting, "We win!"

They fell back onto the floor and began laughing as Luffy cried out, "It's so cool! THIS IS OUR HIDEOUT!"

**(It's so good to write about the more light-hearted parts. It's just hard not to smile. I know I took a little longer writing, but that's to be expected. I hope you enjoy these cute moments while they last. Soon, they'll be faced with the hard truth to what happened with Sabo.)**


	8. What Makes a Family?

**Chapter 8: ****What Makes a Family?**

***A little while earlier***

Not long before the rest of the Straw Hats found the hole, Luffy was sitting up and was looking around in annoyance. One minute he was lying stuck to the ground, and now he was here in the middle of all this darkness. Frowning heavily, he glared around, not having the slightest clue to where he was or how he got here. He didn't like it at all… this dark place… it all felt empty. He hated it.

Jumping up to his feet, he started running off in one random direction—hoping that he could find the way out of this place. His mind felt a little foggy at the moment and he was having trouble trying to remember how he got here.

He was sure that he had some kind of a dream… he dreamt that he'd been stuck to the ground, unable to move, that was when he dreamt that something wrapped around him like rope and was pulling him down. At least that's what he remembered before he opened his eyes in this place.

"Jeez," he said loudly, "Where're the others? Hope they didn't find that treasure they talked about on that door without me. What is this place?"

Of course he didn't have any of the answers as he continued walking, throwing the 'Mystery Rock' up and down in his hand like a ball. The stone was glowing a little in this suffocating darkness, and helped him to see a little bit further—not that it mattered, there wasn't anything down here.

Luffy walked on for a few more minutes, continuing to talk to himself cheerfully. "Man, this cave is so dark," he said, obviously thinking that this place couldn't be anything else even though there wasn't any stone. "I wonder how far it goes. Oooh, maybe that means that the treasure is down here!" He shielded his eyes with his hand, though there was no need to and continued to look around eagerly, as if expecting to see gold or jewels just lying there.

As he peered around, he realized that there was something right in front of him. "That's gotta be where the treasure is!" he said excitedly, "Or better yet… some MEAT!" and he took off running towards it with a laugh.

But as he neared the strange shape, he slowed to a walk and stopped laughing when he realized that there was stone down here. Standing in front of him were two tall, stone pillars standing a few yards apart—both of them stretched high above him, disappearing into the dark. They looked old and worn, covered with black roots as if the stones were covered in nets. Curious, Luffy poked one of the roots with his free hand, and pulled his finger back quickly when the roots moved, almost snake-like.

"Man, was a weird place," he said to himself, walking around to examine the rest of the pillar—only to walk into something hard—his head colliding with something solid.

"OWWW!" he yelled in frustration, rubbing his head as he looked around. "Damn! What's going on here?! I'm rubber, so why'd that hurt?!"

Frowning, he stretched out his hand and felt something there—like a brick wall stretching between the two pillars.

Now frustrated, Luffy continued to throw the 'Mystery Rock' up and down, his head now hurting from all the thinking. There wasn't anything in front of him but dark, so why was there something here? Could it be invisible?

"If it is," Luffy said, his eyes shining, "That'd be so cool! The treasure must be behind this Mystery Wall!"

As he eagerly looked for the way in, the Mystery Rock continued to glow brighter and brighter, until not even Luffy could ignore it. Curious, he looked down at it. "What's it doing now?" he asked before the light suddenly shone so brightly that Luffy had to cover his eyes with his arm to protect his eyes.

"What's going on here?!" he yelled off in the distance, now feeling annoyed. He opened his eyes at once, seeing spots for a second before he noticed that the 'Mystery Rock' had disappeared.

"What?!" he cried out, looking around his feet, thinking he dropped it. "Where'd it go? Hello? Mystery Rock? Where'd you go?!"

So busy looking for the stone, he didn't notice what was happening in front of him at first. But when he did, he could see it. Where nothing had been before, there was now suddenly the blurred outline of a wall between the pillars. Almost as if it was made of thick smoke, the way that it shifted and moved around…

Curious, Luffy walked to it so that he was only inches away and poked at the wall like he had done with the root. But instead of hitting anything, this time, his finger disappeared right into it.

Glancing around at his surroundings one last time, he grinned happily to himself, glad to find something to get him out of this place, he confidently went walking through the smoky wall, disappearing beyond it.

***Present time with the Straw Hats***

"Just when I think that these memories can't get any sweeter," Robin giggled, smiling as that last scene of the boys playing around.

"As interesting as they are," Zoro said, his tone now annoyed, "Why are we able to see this? Couldn't we at least get something more interesting to watch?"

"Listen to you," Robin smiled at him, "Are you that eager to see something dangerous?"

"Just saying," Zoro said grumpily.

"Yohoho, Zoro-san is impatient," Brook answered happily.

"You got that right," Nami sighed, and they returned to the darkness again.

"He's just an idiot, Nami-swan," Sanji said, puffing away on his cigarette.

"What you say you pathetic excuse for a cook?" Zoro demanded.

Sanji bit down on his cigarette before he glared back, "That does it! When we get out of this place, remind me to settle this thing between us once and for all!"

"Sounds good to me," Zoro threatened back, "I've been wanting to shut you up since the day we met!"

"Come on guys!" Chopper begged, growing up to his Heavy Point to try and break them apart. "Let's not fight!"

"Chopper," Robin said gently, "I don't think they actually mean it."

"Oh, yes we do!" they both yelled, now glaring daggers at each other, just daring the other to make one wrong move so that they could attack. Just as Chopper was thinking he'd have to do something drastic to get them apart, the next memory showed up and they were back in the familiar scene of the forest… except now everything was covered with a thick layer of snow.

"Winter?" Nami asked, staring at the lightly falling snow. "But it was summer just a second ago…?"

"I'm guessing it's been awhile since that last memory," Robin commented reasonably.

"Where are they this time?" Chopper asked; though his answer came almost right away when they heard Ace's voice shouting out through the bare trees, behind them, "Sabo! He went that way! Don't let him escape!"

"I'm on it!" Sabo's voice yelled back. "We won't let you escape!"

As the Straw Hats all turned around, they spotted the two boys running through the trees, chasing something that looked like a panda bear… only it's fur patterns are opposite from a panda's usual look. It was dark where pandas would be white and white where pandas would be dark colored.

"What is that? A panda?" Usopp asked confused as it went running by them, the boys still chasing after it.

"Rather a danpa…" Robin said, having seen a couple of them before. "It looks like they're hunting…"

"Yes!" Ace yelled, both boys sprinting after it. "We've got him surrounded!"

Sabo laughed, the wind almost blowing his hat off. "Luffy!" he yelled up ahead, "He's almost there!"

They chased the danpa all the way to a wall, where Luffy was standing at the top, looking ready. "Here he comes… here I go!" Luffy cried excitedly before he jumped. But of course, he stumbled a little and ended up rolling down a ways as a giant snow ball before he hit a rock and broke free. He then fell in a freefall the rest of the way as he headed to the danpa. "You're not getting away!" he yelled and raised the pipe staff.

"Looks like he catches dinner," Sanji said, wishing that he could've cooked up that tasty-looking danpa. Luffy ended up crashing right into the beast, knocking them both down. The difference was, when he leapt back up, gasping for breath, ready to fight it… the danpa slowly fell and hit the ground with a resolving thud.

For a moment, Luffy seemed too stunned to speak. And then…

"I DID IT!" he called proudly. "I GOT HIM!"

"Good for him," Franky said, his robotic hand on his stomach, suddenly noticing how hungry he was. "Man, wish I these memories could hurry up and end so that we can get out of here and get dinner… I could eat a Sea King!"

Sabo laughed as they came up, Luffy now dancing around the catch. "Nice going Luffy!"

"That's our second catch of the day!" Ace called as Luffy kept leaping around happily. "We're gonna eat good tonight."

"It's my first ever catch! Ever!" Luffy called, beaming with pride.

"Oh, his first catch," Sanji said, exhaling his smoke. "Then it'll be even more delicious…"

"Hey, what's that?" Franky suddenly asked, pointing overhead on the cliff above them.

Sabo obvious spotted it too because he cried out in panic, "Luffy! Above you!"

Chopper screamed as they all looked above. Standing where Luffy had been standing before to catch the danpa, was an enormous tiger… a tiger of giant proportions… and looking hungry as he looked down at them. "IT'S THAT TIGER!" Chopper screamed out.

"I guess they weren't the only ones thinking of dinner," Zoro said coolly.

"Why joke around about this?!" Usopp cried out, pointing up to that jungle cat wildly. "That thing's big enough to eat them!"

"They wouldn't make more than a snack for that thing," Robin added.

"Robin…" he croaked out, "Aren't you a little bit worried?"

"He must have followed the scent of our prey," Ace said, gulping as he slowly backed away.

"Luffy! Get out of there!" Sabo yelled. "All he wants is the danpa!"

But Luffy seemed too scared to move as the tiger leapt down in front of him—landing gracefully, but with enough force to make the earth feel as if it was shaking. Even as the tiger licked its giant lips, Luffy didn't move. But he seemed to get his courage back as he held up the pipe and waved it around, trying to deter the giant cat.

"Yes, Luffy-san, you might want to run!" Brook yelled out anxiously.

"He's too strong for you!" Sabo yelled, now looking scared. "Just run away!"

"NO WAY!" Luffy yelled, though it was hard to tell if he was yelling at his brothers or the tiger. "Get lost!"

"You really think it'll listen to you?!" Nami cried out exasperated. "It's a TIGER! Just be happy it only wants the stupid bear!"

But Luffy couldn't hear her, and he refused to move. He might've just been a fly to it as the tiger raised its paw and knocked him aside like how a tiny cat would do to a toy.

"That had to hurt," Franky winced as he watched Luffy go flying.

"DAMN YOU!" Luffy yelled as he got back to his feet and went charging back, determined to fight.

"That moron!" Ace yelled as Sabo yelled out Luffy's name.

"I agree with you," Zoro said as he watched Luffy threw out a punch, only for his rubber arm to miss the tiger completely, and ended with the tiger stepping on it. And like a rubber band, Luffy was sent flying towards it, until he landed on top of the tiger's head. Luffy hung on tightly before the great cat threw him off and Luffy landed in the snow hard. Of course, like he always was… he wasn't going to give up easily. He looked ready to lunch another attack until his brothers came charging out of nowhere and grabbed him.

"Wait, wait, wait!" Sabo told him as he and Ace now carried Luffy away—who was fighting tooth and nail to get back to the tiger.

"We can get out of here while he's distracted!" Ace yelled as they bolted away and the tiger began to tear into Luffy's catch.

"Yeah, I agree," Nami said, running after them. "I know that Luffy's protective of his food, but he doesn't stand a chance against that thing yet."

Luffy struggled and yelled to the tiger, "I'll be back for you later!"

"Of course he will," Robin laughed as the vision shifted again and they ended up stopping, no longer having a reason to keep running.

"So stubborn…" Sanji said shaking his head, "Should've guessed he was like that even as a kid."

"But really, he didn't stand a chance," Nami sighed, "That thing was huge! And Luffy couldn't even throw a punch without him missing."

"You gotta admire that perseverance!" Brook offered, still strumming his guitar, its musical notes echoing around them, making the darkness feel a little less empty. Soon though, the darkness was replaced by night. It was dark out with a moon shining down on them. They were all a little surprised to see that they were standing at the end of the same bridge that Ace had knocked Luffy off the first time. Ace and Sabo were walking ahead, carrying a second danpa with Luffy slowly walking behind them looking upset.

"It's a shame you lost your first ever catch like that," Sabo said sympathetically to him when he noticed that Luffy was looking back, obviously where the tiger was.

"That would be upsetting," Zoro agreed, "But it just means that he has to get stronger."

"Give it a rest," Ace sighed. "There's not much we can do when we're up against the Tiger Lord."

"Tiger Lord?" Chopper asked confused.

"I guess that's the title of the tiger," Robin said.

"But I caught that one!" Luffy complained loudly. "Why'd he have to take it?"

"Because he's a tiger, and he can," Usopp said with a gulp. "It's big enough to do whatever it wants."

"What is he doing now?" Nami asked as they watched Luffy jumping up and down on the bridge, causing it to start swaying dangerously.

"YOW! That's not good," Franky said, not liking the way the bridge was swinging. "That bridge looks old… it might not be able to hold up…"

"S-Stupid, don't shake the bridge!" Ace yelled, interrupting Franky, as he tried to keep his balance. But it was too late, for Luffy jumped down too hard and created a large hole right where he was standing before he fell through all the way. Completely forgetting about the catch, Ace and Sabo dropped the danpa as they ran over to grab him before he fell through to the frozen river below them.

"Quite a change from before…" Zoro said, remembering how Ace simply knocked Luffy off without a second thought. Now, Sabo was still on the bridge, holding onto Ace's legs who was dangling there, holding onto Luffy's hand, which had stretched a good ten feet or so as he swung below.

"Sabo! Hurry and pull us up!" Ace gasped up.

"Right…" Sabo said, and with a great effort, he heaved them up safely. Of course, Luffy was smiling the whole time as they finally got up and trudged back to the hideout.

"That's a waste of a good danpa," Zoro said, watching as the dead bear go drifting down the river.

"Ahhh… that idiot!" Sanji cried out, furious that anyone could waste food like that, wishing that he could drop kick that brat for doing something so stupid.

"We're finally back," Sabo sighed; sounding tired, and just ended up falling onto the blankets. "We've had really bad luck today. Let's just go to bed."

"We're back but we're unlucky?" Luffy asked confused, clearly not understanding what he was talking about. He then blinked as if he realized something and put his hands over his belly, "Ah! I'm hungry!"

"Of course he is," Nami said shaking her head.

"And whose fault is that?! Ace demanded as he hit him over the head before they did what Sabo suggested and were all in the nest of blankets.

"I wonder what's gonna happen now?" Chopper asked interested, as the boys all stared up at the ceiling, with Luffy giggling to himself as he pulled his blanket over his head.

"What's so funny?" Ace asked him.

"Laughing won't fill your stomach you know," Sabo added sleepily, as he began to close his eyes.

"Oh, we know that," Sanji sighed, remembering that Luffy just seems to eat more when he was in a good mood.

"I've decided," Luffy said, in a familiar tone that they all knew too well. It meant he made up his mind and nothing was going to change it. "Ace! Sabo! You should join my crew after all!"

"Again, that takes me back," Franky laughed.

"Right?" Luffy asked them both. "You'll join won't you?"

"What's gotten into you all of a sudden?" Sabo asked him lightly.

"I thought we'd agreed to decide that when we're older," Ace added, rolling over to his side. "Just go to sleep."

"Still," Luffy added. "I think it'd be a lot more fun if we were together! You'll need my help, right?"

The Straw Hats all laughed at that just as both boys turned over onto their stomachs and Sabo said, "I'd understand if you said that you needed _our_ help, but…"

"Yeah…" Ace said.

"I agree," Nami said, still smiling.

"Yohoho, what fun this is," Brook laughed.

"You're wrong!" Luffy said determinedly. "Someday I'll be saving you!"

They all glanced at each other, all of them thinking about Impel Down and Marineford again… all of them wondering just what happened to Luffy while they had all been separated.

"If you two decided to join my crew, I'd let you join anytime," Ace said resting his head on his hand.

"NO!" Luffy and Sabo called out at the same time. "Join my crew!"

"Then this conversation is over," Ace said at once.

"One way to end it," Usopp said, rubbing his head as Ace flopped back down.

"But Luffy won't let this go," Franky added.

"You won't join me no matter what?" Luffy asked, now sounding disappointed.

"I won't," Ace said, rolling over again and pulled his blanket up to go to sleep. Luffy then looked to Sabo and asked him the same thing.

"I don't want to be anyone's underling, alright?" he said simply before he also lied down.

"Underling…?" Sanji smirked. "Everyone on this crew bosses Luffy around."

"What the hell?" Luffy said with a pout on his face. "It would've been fun…" he frowned but then he brightened up as he suggested, "Oh! I know! How about the one who defeats the huge tiger gets to be captain?"

They both looked up at him surprised, but interested now.

"The Tiger Lord?" Ace repeated, looking back at him. "You serious?"

"The chances of you becoming captain are pretty much zero," Sabo added.

"That's not true!" Luffy said at once. "None of us can beat that thing now right?"

"He gets to the point when he wants to," Sanji said.

"Not often, but yes," Usopp agreed.

"He's so simple minded, he just sees the obvious that the rest of us seem to notice," Nami sighed.

They both sat up, now definitely interested. "Alright!" they agreed.

Luffy then giggled. "Then it's settled!"

"It's a deal!" they said.

"But Luffy and Ace both became separate captains," Chopper pointed out.

"I guess they either didn't beat the tiger, or something changed," Robin said reasonably.

"Oh, I wonder what happened?" Brook asked curiously as the dark tree house was replaced by the three boys walking through the snow with fish tied to their backs.

"Is everyone ready?" Ace asked them.

"What are they doing with those fish?" Chopper asked.

"We worked hard fishing this fish," Luffy said, looking at the fish with a hungry look in his eyes. "I wanted to eat them."

"We've got no choice," Sabo pointed out. "This is gonna draw him out."

"The Tiger Lord?" Usopp asked.

"No, they're trying to get sharks out of the forest," Zoro said sarcastically, rolling his eye. "What else would it be?"

"You don't have to be cruel," Usopp said with a frown. Just at that moment, there was a deep growl of something big through the trees.

"HE'S HERE!" Chopper screamed out.

"Here he is!" Sabo said, holding up his pipe. "Get ready!"

"Greedy jerk," Luffy said, now looking angry, the memory of the tiger stealing his first catch still on his mind. "I won't let him take them today!"

Now there was no doubt that there was a roar. But when the beast came out of the haze, it wasn't a tiger, rather a giant bear with a jagged scar over its right eye.

"That's not the Tiger Lord," Sabo said obviously disappointed. "That's just some bear."

"But isn't that the same bear that fought the tiger from before?" Robin asked, remembering back when Ace was still trying to lose Luffy in the forest and the little boy was stuck between the two behemoths.

"Looks like it," Franky said, examining the bear, "I recognize that scar!"

"How boring," Luffy said, holding his hand up and now actually trying to shoo it away.

"No," Ace said at once, his face deadly serious, and he held up his pipe—looking ready for a fight. "This guy is as strong as the Tiger Lord. If we can't beat him, we don't stand a chance against the Tiger."

"Not a bad idea," Sanji said, thinking it over, "Get the second best before you go for the king…"

"I get it," Sabo said, grinning at the idea. "So he's gonna be practice."

"I'll go first!" Ace yelled, charging forward.

"Saw that coming," Zoro smirked.

"Geez, who knew how hot-headed Ace was," Nami sighed, her hand through her orange hair. "He was as bad as Luffy."

"That's cheap!" Sabo cried.

"Not fair!" Luffy screamed, running right behind them. Ace jumped and stuck the bear a few times in the head, but didn't seem to be doing any good as he landed and backed away.

"I think they made it mad," Chopper said worriedly as the bear growled at them.

"Why? What's he saying?" Usopp asked him. "You can understand him right?"

"He's telling them to get lost before he kills them!" Chopper cried out.

"EHHHHH?!" Usopp yelled, freaking out, "Well, then of course he's mad!"

The boys yelled as they were left with no choice but to drop the fish and run for it. The bear right on their heels.

"They might want to run faster before the bear runs them down," Sanji offered as they ran alongside them.

"Normal bears are faster than normal humans, but one this big is bound to be even faster," Robin added.

"You two aren't helping!" Nami yelled, wondering just what was going to happen now.

But just as he was about to catch up, something went flying over the boys heads and struck the bear in the stomach. The bear was hit with such force, that it was sent flying backwards, skidded a few feet and lay there motionless.

"What was that?!" Brook called startled. "It came out of nowhere!"

"It's a giant hammer!" Franky shouted, pointing to it. He was right… it was an enormous mallet, about as tall as a normal man. That was when they saw an elderly man with long, grey, unkempt hair that went down to his shoulders and thick eyebrows that almost completely cover up his eyes jumped over the boys to face the bear.

"Who-who is that?" Luffy stammered, voicing what they were all thinking. The bear however was now getting back up to his feet—and they realized that the hammer merely stunned it—not finished it. Now, it was looking angry as it went charging at the old man, who was calmly walking towards it.

"That old guy's in trouble!" Luffy called in panic.

"That's… Naguri from the Gray Terminal!" Sabo called, now screaming for him to run as well. "Run away! He'll kill you!"

But he didn't move as the bear came closer and closer.

"He's gonna get killed!" Chopper cried out. But at that moment, Naguri held up his hand just as he said the word, "Noshi," and the snow around them picked up to create a cloud so thick that they couldn't see in it. By the time that it cleared however, Naguri was standing with his hand held up, the bear about to strike. Then very slowly, it lowered its paw… suddenly calm.

"That…" Usopp cried out, his eyes wide in amazement, "That's…"

"Conqueror's Haki!" Robin finished, now deeply impressed.

"This isn't your den is it?" Naguri asked the bear. "Go back to the forest, Noshi!"

And almost as if it was in a trance, it slowly turned and went back to the cover of the trees. They all stared after the bear, stunned by what happened.

"That ability never gets old," Zoro smirked.

"That's so cool!" Chopper gasped as he and Usopp had stars sparkling in their eyes. "I wish I can use it!"

"Only one in a million are born with this particular form of Haki, Chopper," Robin explained to him, "But there's always a chance you might be able to…"

"Really?" he asked her eagerly. "In that case, I'm gonna start learning when we get back!"

"AMAZING!" Luffy gasped, standing up and gazing at Naguri with new respect. "Just like back then…?"

"Back then?" Franky asked, scratching his head before he understood. "Oh, right! He's thinking of Shanks!"

Soon the afternoon memory faded until it was replaced by the night, and the boys were sitting with Naguri by a fire, cooking up the fish that they had earlier.

"Naguri!" Luffy said loudly, in an awed voice. "So you were a pirate before? Not just a pirate but a _captain_?!"

"I was indeed," Naguri confessed.

"That explains a lot," Sanji smiled, "I can see it now…"

"I knew it!" Luffy laughed, clapping the old man on the shoulder. "Only a pirate captain could've pulled off something like that!"

"Something like that?" he asked curiously.

"Chasing off that big bear like that just by glaring at him!" Luffy elaborated, a big grin still on his face, "Just like Shanks! You're incredible old man!"

"You don't say?" he asked laughing.

"But why is such a cool old man living here in the Grey Terminal if he was a pirate?" Chopper asked confused.

"I'm sure we'll find out," Brook said.

Sabo looked down to the cooking fish before he began whispering to Ace. "I can't believe that he used to be a pirate," they all leaned in so that they could hear more of what he was saying. "I mean… he goes around collecting junk and spending his days hammering it trying to create some nonsensical device. The Gray Terminal residences and Bluejam's crew are always taunting him. That's all I've seen…" he sighed, giving Naguri a suspicious glance, "He was quite a pitiful ol' timer."

"He may be old, but he did save your hides from that bear!" Usopp said deadpanned.

"You're such a kid, Sabo!" Luffy said, hugging Naguri. "That's what a true pirate is!"

"You're just a kid to!" he shot back in annoyance, "What do you know about pirates?"

"I do know!" Luffy yelled back as Ace got up. "Shanks never picks meaningless battles!"

"Yep, Shanks is his main influence…" Nami smiled, shaking her head.

"Shanks again?" Sabo asked as Ace said checking out the fish. "This one's done!" he said quickly cutting them up into four pieces and dropped them in their laps. As Luffy complained that his share was too small, Ace asked Naguri what he was doing in a place like this.

"That's what I want to know," Usopp said sitting down, almost believing that he was part of the conversation as he sat down at the campfire with them all.

"You really want to know, Noshi?" he asked.

"It's fine if you don't want to tell us," Ace answered him.

"No, it's alright, Noshi," he said, softly stroking the fire. "Have you ever heard of Gold Roger?"

The whole crew froze as they all glanced at each other nervously—the look on Ace's face was completely rigid and his eyes widened in surprise. "Oh, they heard alright," Usopp said, a nervous glance at Ace.

So Naguri told the story how his crew challenged the pirate king to a battle and lost.

"That's… so cool!" Usopp and Chopper both said, stars in their eyes.

"He fought against the Pirate King?" Brook asked in surprise, "What a surprise! Just amazing!"

"But Ace doesn't look to happy," Robin pointed out the angry look on the child Ace's face before he turned and walked away from them all. They were so busy talking they didn't realize that Ace had left at first.

"And it wasn't just Roger," Naguri explained to Luffy and Sabo. "The whole crew was strong. Their constant, flawless teamwork was the most impressive thing about them."

"That sounds impressive," Zoro said, thinking it over. He wondered just what it would've been like to face Roger… well, meeting Rayleigh did give him a slight idea.

"I see…" Luffy said as Sabo got up, staring after Ace with a worried expression on his face. "I've got a long way to go before I become a true pirate."

"You want to be a pirate, noshi?" he asked him amused.

"Oh, he does become one," Zoro sighed. "And not just _some_ pirate either…"

"Ironic that his stepbrother turned out to be the son of the old king," Franky said thinking it all over.

"YEAH!" Luffy yelled proudly. "A pirate!" He jumped up and asked, "Ok, old timer! Can you start training me?"

Naguri looked at him in surprise. "I want to become strong!" Luffy explained. "I've gotta become Ace and Sabo's captain!"

It was around here that Luffy finally noticed that Ace was gone and asked, "Huh? Where'd Ace go?"

"Well," Sabo said slowly. "About that…"

And so he told them the truth.

Luffy's jaw hit the ground. "The Pirate King is Ace's dad?!" he cried out in amazement.

"I guess this is when he finds out," Nami said needlessly.

"But how did Sabo know?" Chopper asked.

"Well, I guess that Ace-san must've told him," Brook said, "Apparently they were friends for a long time so it must've come up at least once."

"Yeah," Sabo sighed. "But this is a secret ok? Never say a word about this in front of Ace. If you do, he'll kill you."

"Ok, that's harsh," Usopp said, sweat dropping at the thought. He had a feeling that Sabo wasn't exaggerating his words.

"Why?" Luffy asked, looking puzzled.

"I don't know the details," Sabo explained quietly, "But… he hates Roger."

"Hates him?" Chopper asked, not understanding. "But why would he hate his own father like that?"

"I can understand," Robin said softly, suddenly having new sympathy for Ace.

"But he's his dad, right?" Luffy asked, unknowingly voicing what Chopper was thinking.

"So what if he's his dad?" Sabo asked coldly, and they were looking at him in surprise, having never heard him use that cold tone before.

"Sabo-san seems upset now," Brook said, now sounding worried.

"Well, he has every reason to be," Zoro said quietly, but before they could ask him what he meant, Luffy blinked a few times and said in realization, "Right… because your parents are…"

Sabo looked away before he said, "Not all kids get along with their parents."

"Right…" Nami answered softly, remembering everything Sabo said about his parents and how they didn't care about him… only their status. "I guess he would understand better than anyone."

Chopper frowned sadly and looked at his feet as he thought that over. He knew how Sabo felt… and for a moment he was reminded of his herd when he was a baby… how they made him walk behind them all just because he was born with a blue nose… and how they chased him away when he ate the Devil's Fruit…

"Still," Luffy said slowly. "His dad was the Pirate King…"

"I understand that you want to ask him about Roger," Sabo said seriously, "but you mustn't say a word about this, okay?"

"That's good," Robin said, agreeing that was the best thing to do.

"Right," Luffy agreed. "I understand."

"So you all think that's the reason he never told us?" Nami asked them wonderingly.

"Well, the truth is that it was never any of our business to begin with," Zoro said firmly. "It doesn't matter."

"I agree with what Robin-chan said before," Sanji said, "It's good that no one else knew about it."

Sabo then looked to Naguri and asked, "You promise too, Naguri?"

"Alright," he said thoughtfully. "I won't say a word, noshi…"

"You really think that they can trust that old guy?" Usopp asked as they followed Sabo and Luffy back to the hideout. "I mean, they just met him and Sabo dropped the big secret of Ace's birth."

"He did save them," Chopper pointed out.

"Yes, but that doesn't mean that they could've trusted him," Sanji said skeptically.

"Something tells me that the secret was safe with Naguri-san," Brook said softly. "Though he did lose against Roger before, he didn't seem to hold any grudge against him. He seems like an honorable man…"

Neither Luffy nor Sabo spoke again as they reached the tree house.

"There he is," Sabo said, pointing up the tree to where Ace was leaning against the sill and staring out at the sky. "Now, you've gotta act ignorant, causal, and normal."

"Not gonna happen," they all said as Brook and Robin laughed.

"Ignorant and causal maybe…" Nami said, "But normal?"

"Luffy's anything but that," Zoro said darkly.

"Right," Luffy said without another word.

"This won't last long," Franky said knowingly.

"Don't say a word about…" Sabo warned again.

"I won't! I got it!" Luffy said and soon they were flying up until they were looking at Ace just outside the house.

"Oh! Ace!" Sabo called, a little too happily, as they entered the hideout. "You went home before we did?"

Luffy came bursting in after Sabo and asked, "Oi, Ace! So Roger was your dad?"

"What a blabber mouth," Nami said shaking her head as the others all laughed. "You think that Sabo would've realized that by now."

Speaking of which, a look of panic came over Sabo's face has he turned to shake Luffy, "Oi! Luffy, I told you never to bring that up!"

"Well, it's not like he went blabbing about it to anyone but Ace," Chopper offered.

"Maybe, but I don't think that Ace wants to hear it," Robin answered, looking at Ace's stony expression—his body tense and his shoulders shaking.

"Luffy?" he asked coldly.

"Yes?" Luffy asked happily, as Sabo moved to hide behind him as if afraid that Ace would attack him.

"Where'd you hear that from?" Ace asked.

"Who else but Sabo?" Franky asked.

"This isn't going to end well," Sanji asked with a sigh

"From Sabo!" Luffy told him.

"Yohoho! Why do I feel like he just made a big mistake?" Brook asked.

"I get the fact that he's honest, but does he have to keep talking?" Zoro said, not liking the furious look in Ace's eyes—the exact same wild look that had been in them when he knocked Luffy off that bridge when they first met.

"That idiot is going to get them both killed," Sanji added as he watched Ace turn, his bangs hiding his eyes as he slowly walked towards them.

"Poor kid…" Robin sighed.

Sabo only continued to hide as Luffy asked, "Ace, what kind of guy was Roger?"

"Stop it!" Sabo said hurriedly. "You idiot! Don't ask him that!"

"It's not like he could tell him anything anyway," Robin said. "Roger died before Ace was even born…"

"Let go of me, Sabo! I want to know!"

"Don't blow our cover so casually!"

"Too late now," Brook said happily as Ace stood in front of them and smacked them both hard on their heads.

"I don't ever want to hear that name again!" he yelled angrily as they fell to the floor.

"What was that for?" Luffy demanded, a giant bump on his head. "Don't be so stingy! Just tell me!"

"You didn't have to punch us out of the blue without explanation!" Sabo added, his hands over the spot that was swollen.

"SHUT UP!" Ace yelled, looking dangerous as he hit them both again and leaving bumps on their bumps.

"Ok, now he's scaring me again," Chopper said timidly as he moved to the back of the group.

"He… really hates him doesn't he?" Nami asked softly, never knowing anyone to actually hate their own family that much.

"Can you blame him?" Sanji asked suddenly. "He has every reason to."

"What do you mean?" Usopp asked, not understanding.

"No matter what Ace does, he'll always have that hanging over his head," Zoro added explained softly, looking at those cold eyes again—was this always like it for Ace? Always questioning where you came from? Always wondering where you belonged?

"Roger made a lot of enemies in life who still bear a grudge against him," Robin also added, "And they would jump at a chance to kill and hate Ace simply for that. So many people still hate him… and if they knew whose child Ace was, then they would most certainly hate him as well."

"But that's not fair!" Chopper cried out.

"That's just how life is, Chopper," she told him. "It's not fair, but that's just how it is." But here, she could understand… after all, the government considered her life as nothing but a sin since they destroyed her home Ohara. Luffy and Ace were in the same situation as she was… in the World Government's eyes, the three of them were all children who should never have been born. They were all born as the children of devils.

"You could at least tell us something!" Luffy cried at him, "You meanie!"

"Right!" Sabo said, looking up. "Brothers don't keep secrets from each other!"

"Oh, that's not true," Franky said, suddenly missing his loyal brothers and little sisters back at Water 7. He was tearing up just thinking of them—hoping that they were doing just fine.

"Shut up!" Ace yelled loudly. "What do you mean brothers?!"

"Aren't they brothers?" Chopper asked, thinking of when they exchanged those sake cups.

"Roger, Roger, Roger," Luffy chanted. "Ace's dad is the Pirate King!"

"Brave soul," Usopp said, shaking his head, wondering how Luffy lived as long as he had.

"Stop it!" Sabo gasped at him, "Don't provoke him!"

"This is because you couldn't keep your mouth shut!" Ace screamed at him.

"What?" Sabo yelled. "What did you say?"

That was when it broke into a large fight which ended with a big mess and Ace saying, "From this moment on, you two are no longer my brothers!"

"That's what I was gonna say!" they both screamed out, turning away from each other.

"That's it?" Chopper cried out in horror. "Because of that they're not longer brothers?"

"Oh, I doubt they actually mean that," Robin smiled. "They were just angry… and don't want to admit they did anything wrong. We all say things we don't really mean when we're angry. I'm sure it won't last long."

"Just give them a little time to calm down and you'll see," Nami added as the memory faded and they were all back in the darkness, "That's just how some families are. Even if they drive you crazy, you're still family."

"Family…" Chopper said, thinking it all over. "So, anyone can become a family?"

"Sure, why not?" Usopp asked, suddenly thinking of his own mother and how she had raised him after his father left. She had been a strong woman who told him all sorts of amazing stories about pirates going on adventures and he wanted to be just like that. He also thought of Kaya and his old crew like family after his mother died. When he said goodbye to them all and set out to sea, he told them to live their own dreams and he couldn't help but wonder just what they were doing now.

"What makes a family?" Chopper suddenly asked them all. It was something that he couldn't quite figure out. What makes a family work well? What makes a family—well, a family?

They all looked at each other in surprise, unsure to how to answer that. None of them ever really thought about it before… but suddenly they were all wondering the same thing.

Nami frowned as she thought; unconsciously playing with the gold bracelet that Nojiko gave her before she left home. She thought of her mother and sister… and even Genzo who was like a father to her… though none of them were related, she thought of each of them as her sister and her parents. She remembered with painful details how hard her mother worked to support her and Nojiko… and then how she gave up her life to protect them… as far as she was concerned, her mother had to have been one of the bravest and strongest people she ever knew.

"I guess…" she finally said thoughtfully, "Its unconditional help and selfishness for each other… a group of people that live together and would risk their life to defend one of their own. At least, that's what I think…"

"I think that's a poetic way to put it, Nami," Robin smiled, as she thought back to the days to how she tried to distance herself from other people, even her allies, as she knew that she was bound to leave them sooner or later. Over time, however, Robin becomes closer with these crewmates, and felt something that she hadn't felt since Ohara had been destroyed. A sense of belonging… a home. She didn't know how or when it happened, but she had come to care about her crew more than the rest of the world and everything in it. She will always be grateful to Luffy for taking her in. In many ways, Luffy reminded her of Saul—who will always have a special place in her heart for being such a kind friend and giving her hope, as well as sacrificing himself in order to save her.

"Does that make us like a family now?" Chopper asked innocently and they all looked at each other startled at the question.

"You know… I never really thought of it before," Usopp said with a nervous laugh. "I mean, that is what a pirate crew is like isn't it? I guess we are sorta like one…"

"Yeah, we're a dysfunctional one," Zoro added, not sure how he felt about that. He didn't really remember his parents—having travelled around his home village, looking for people to fight. When he ended up beating everyone there, he went over to the next one to look for a real challenge, and boy did he find one. He remembered his sensei… he was grateful for teaching him the sword and giving him Kunia's sword. While at the same time, he remembered his vow to her dearly. But they weren't his family… where they?

"I guess so," Nami suddenly laughed, answering Chopper. "I mean, we're not like any other family out there. But I've always thought as you, Luffy, and Usopp as like my brothers or something."

"Really?" Chopper asked excitedly.

"What do you do with brothers?" Sanji asked suddenly, scratching his head, "I was raised alone." Well, that wasn't completely true. He still had the chiefs from back at the Baratie who he practically grew up with. Though they argued and fought on a daily basis, he sometimes found himself wondering about them and what they were doing right now.

"I guess we just deal with it the same way we've always done," Franky laughed, "You can all call me your 'Big Bro Franky'!"

"I think I'll pass," Robin said and the happiness on Franky's face fell.

"This is all so touching!" Brook sighed happily.

"Almost sickening," Zoro said.

"Don't you have a shred of kindness in you?" Usopp demanded.

"I think that what everyone means," Robin said quietly to Chopper, "Is that we all feel the same way. We just have a funny way of showing it."

Chopper just smiled back, "So all of you are like my brothers and sisters?"

"I guess that's a good way to put it," she smiled, as the memory came back and they were standing in the forest in the late afternoon, "Some more than others. But we can talk about this more a little later."

Luffy was standing there with Naguri, who was telling him to cut down one of the large trees.

"Who let him near an ax?" Zoro demanded. After a few minutes, Luffy had been able to chop through the thick wood and it came crashing down. But as it fell, they could hear the sounds of screaming from the direction of the falling tree.

"AHHHHH! You don't think he hit someone do you?" Chopper gasped in panic.

"Knowing Luffy, probably," Nami sighed.

"If he had, they'd be as flat as pancakes now," Robin said and Chopper screamed again, getting ready to run out and treat whoever was injured before remembering that he wouldn't be able to do anything anyway.

"Don't worry Chopper-san," Brook said prancing forward a little to see for himself. "Those voices sounded familiar, yohoho!"

"Sorry about that!" Luffy shouted, running up as well when the tree crashed to the ground. "Are you alright? Really, I'm sorry!"

He stopped when he saw who it was and beamed at the startled faces of Ace and Sabo.

"LUFFY!" they called as Luffy jumped up and down excitedly, obviously thrilled to see them. "Ace! Sabo! Long time no see! Have you been looking after yourselves?"

"What does he mean by that?" Usopp asked in surprise.

"Well, I'm guessing that after that little fight, Luffy decided to go train with Naguri," Robin offered, looking around at the snow. "Though if I had to guess, I'd say that it hadn't been too long."

Naguri then came up to stand next to him as he looked at them. Sabo laughed uncertainly, "More or less?" he said, sounding more like a question than an answer.

When the image faded and then reappeared, they were standing near the shore, a small alcove with the four of them by a small campsite. Luffy was showing Sabo the target he made and had just let out a Gum-Gum pistol—missing the target—and hitting Naguri.

"I'm glad to see that his aim has gotten better," Franky laughed, "At least he's not hitting himself anymore!"

"But he still can't hit the target," Usopp said with an amused grin. "No wonder he wanted the mighty Sniper Master Usopp on his team!"

Sabo was laughing as well. "That's great! A week ago, you couldn't hit straight at all!"

They talked a little longer about all the training that Naguri was putting him through and as they walked back, Luffy was just saying, "I'll become much stronger and then…"

But suddenly he was stopped when Ace was shouting.

"And what if Roger had a child?" Ace demanded. The Straw Hats all turned to him at once to see that Ace was confronting Naguri—apparently in the middle of an argument. Naguri merely smiled as he answered, "Well, I'm sure he would have it rough. Whether he tried to live his life within the law or as a pirate… he'd always have the pirate king's name bound to him. I can't even imagine how cruel that would be. But if I were that child, I wouldn't even consider being a pirate."

"For an old man, he makes a good point," Sanji answered grimly.

"Why's that?" Chopper asked.

"Just repeating what we said earlier," Robin said softly. "In the end, wasn't it the fact that Ace was the son of Roger that he was killed?"

They stared at her as she sighed unhappily.

"That's just how the world thinks," was all she said just as Naguri answered as well, "The name of his father would ultimately destroy him, noshi…"

"Destroy him?" Ace demanded, looking furious—angrier than anything they had seen yet. "You don't know anything, yet you think you can say something like that? Fight me, old geezer!"

He then charged forward, with Naguri stopping the pipe staff with his hammer.

"Fight him?" Nami cried out. "What's that gonna solve?"

"It'll help calm him down," Zoro offered.

"But that's not going to change anything!" she cried.

"Don't bother them," Robin answered, continuing to watch grimly, "We can't do anything anyway."

"Ace!" Sabo cried out, surprised that he could lose it so completely like that.

"Didn't I tell you?" Naguri asked him quietly. "To a pirate, defeat means losing your life."

"He's gonna kill him?" Chopper cried out in panic.

"Oh, I doubt that he'll go that far," Brook answered, before he thought it over and added, "At least I hope not…"

"I won't lose!" Ace proclaimed, charging the pipe in like a sword.

"He's angry," Zoro said frowning, knowing that this wasn't going to end well.

"He's not thinking straight," Sanji said as he watched Ace swung the pipe around like a club while Naguri kept dodging, finally knocking the pipe out of his hands; causing it to go flying in the air, hitting the pot of water over fire and putting it out, leaving them in darkness. "Nor was he really fighting, he just waved that staff around with the grace of a club. Just charged ahead and attack."

"Wow, so Ace lost?" Chopper asked in amazement.

"Fighting with anger," Zoro said in disappointment. "That's no way to win."

Naguri held the hammer to Ace's face, "I win," he said calmly.

"Damn it!" Ace screamed out, closing his eyes, as if truly thinking that he would kill him. "Just do whatever you like! I don't care!"

"Aright then," Naguri said agreeably. "Come with me then, noshi."

Robin smiled as they followed them.

"What's happening?" Usopp asked, noticing the started expressions on the boy's faces.

"I don't know," Robin said, "But I'm sure that we'll see soon enough."

They followed them through a small cave in the wall, and along a pathway that stretched over the ocean. Luffy, obviously realizing where they were going, ran on ahead, screaming for his brothers to hurry up.

"What's he so happy about?" Zoro asked grumpily; Sabo thought the same thing.

"What are you so excited about, Luffy?" Sabo asked once he caught up.

"Watch and be impressed!" Luffy answered, turning and following where Naguri was standing… and there, built in the shadows of the side of the cliff was a…

"Oh, cool!" Usopp yelled with a big smile on his face.

"It's a pirate ship!" Chopper said, eyes sparkling, jumping up and down excitedly.

It was indeed a small pirate ship, about the size of their old ship, Merry, had been… and it looked entirely homemade. Made from lumber and steel…

"It's great isn't it?" Luffy asked them, jumping up and down excitedly, "A real pirate ship!"

"A pirate ship?" Sabo repeated in wonder before he turned to Naguri and asked, "So this is what you're always working on, Naguri!"

He smiled as he looked at it proudly. "I wasn't able to make much progress on my own," he admitted. "Do you three think you can help me finish it?"

Sabo and Ace's faces fell. "Help you?" Ace repeated as if he could think of a million better things to do than help him, "Why should we?"

"Didn't you just say I could do whatever I wanted with you, noshi?" he asked him and Ace looked ready to kick himself.

"He got him there," Brook laughed.

"Now he has no choice in the matter," Sanji agreed.

"W-wait a minute!" Sabo cried out hurriedly, "You said 'you three' does that mean I have to help out too?"

"You might as well as long as you're here," Naguri added.

"What kind of reasoning is that?" he demanded.

"Don't know," Brook laughed. "It makes sense to me, Yohohoho."

"We're busy trying to defeat the Tiger Lord!" Sabo finished.

"I'll train you to fight the tiger too, noshi," Naguri offered, ready to make a deal.

"What?" Sabo said before thinking it over, "Well, I guess that's fine I guess…"

"I rather have the old man on my side than these three kids," Zoro stated, thinking back to how he dealt with that bear.

"Tell me one thing first," Ace said, still in a bad mood. "After you finish it, what are you gonna do with this ship?"

Naguri pulled his pipe out of his mouth and answered, "Of course, I plan on setting out to sea in search of the crew I parted ways with."

"Set sail?" Nami repeated in surprised. "But isn't he a little old for that?"

"It's not like it's the Grand Line," Sanji reminded him. "This is the East Blue."

Sabo looked surprised as well and asked, "You're setting out to sea?"

"What?" Naguri asked, grinning, "Are you telling me that an old man can't sail the seas?"

"No," Sabo said awkwardly, "That's not what I meant…"

"Age is irrelevant when you're pursuing your dreams, noshi," he smiled. "I will go out to sea, no matter what others say! I've made up my mind!" He pointed the hammer at them all and asked, "You've got a problem with that?"

Luffy laughed happily, "Not at all!"

"What determination!" Usopp cried out, his eyes watering. "Setting out to find the friends that he once risked his life fighting side by side! Now that is something special!"

"Now I wish I met him," Franky cried out, touched at the story.

"This is really getting old," Nami sighed, sick of listening to them crying at every other memory they see. But at the same time, she could understand where Naguri was coming from… all this seemed strangely familiar to her, but she couldn't think of where she'd see it…

"He's quite an impressive old guy…" Sabo said before he realized that Ace was walking away. "Ace?" he questioned.

"A promise is a promise," Ace said crossly. "I'll help you with the ship. Also…" he looked back and proclaimed, "Tomorrow, I _will_ win!"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Sabo asked after him.

"Sore loser?" Usopp asked worriedly.

Naguri just smiled. And that was it… the Straw Hats spent the next few memories watching as the boys would haul the wood from the trees they cut down, working on the ship, train under Naguri's watchful eye, going to trash mountain and finding supplies, sewing the sails, and hunting for food. Before they knew it, winter had turned to spring and they were now watching Sabo and Ace sparring each other.

"What's the point in watching all this?" Zoro asked as Luffy charged in and threw a punch, narrowly missing Ace and hitting Naguri once again.

"Aside from it being entertaining that is," he added as the others laughed.

"I think his aim is getting better," Robin said optimistic as Naguri tasted the dirt and sat back up.

"Hey, Luffy!" he yelled in annoyance. "You did it again!"

Luffy laughed, "Sorry…"

"I wonder how many times that happened," Chopper asked curiously.

"I swear you guys," Naguri said grumpily as he rubbed his now sore cheek as he observed them all. "You don't care about anything but strength…"

"Men…" Nami sighed in agreement.

"But are you sure that's enough?" Naguri finished.

All three of them looked surprised at the question, as if they never thought about it. "What's that supposed to mean?" Sabo asked in confusion. "We decided that the strongest would be the captain. Do you have a problem with that?"

"That's right," Luffy agreed. "The one who beats the big tiger becomes the captain."

"The great tiger, huh?" Naguri said slowly, as if they had given him the answer to a difficult question he had been wondering. "Well, it's true that strength is an important quality for a captain to have… but there's something more important."

They all stared at him. "Something more important?" Sabo asked, now sounding completely lost.

"I get it," Franky grinned, tilting up his sunglasses so that he could see them. "They haven't learned how to work together as a team yet.

Usopp laughed, "Yeah, it took even us all awhile to learn how to do that."

"Indeed," Naguri said. "And that is…" he paused for a dramatic effect before answering, "I forget…"

"WHAT?!" Usopp, Franky, and Chopper all cried out at the same time as Sabo and Luffy knocked their heads together. "What's that supposed to mean? You got us excited for nothing!" Sabo cried out.

"Man, I thought that he was going to say something deep and insightful!" Usopp sighed.

"Yeah, I wanna know what he was going to say," Chopper said.

Zoro glanced over to Ace, who hadn't said a word… but he could tell right away that the kid was thinking a lot about what Naguri had said. He could see right away that this was probably the first time that Ace ever wondered about anything but growing stronger. Zoro's eyebrows furrowed slightly… did Ace truly understand? No, he had a feeling that he didn't just yet… Ace didn't have something he felt was worth protecting just yet did he?

More than anything else at the moment, he wished he knew what was going on in his head; he didn't stop thinking about it even after the vision faded and they were back in a bright sunny day by the shore.

"OHHH!" Chopper called out happily, watching Naguri cut a rope to release a ramp. With a great crash, the ship slid down the slope and into the sea.

"Alright it's done!" Luffy yelled out happily.

"Not bad," Franky said, smiling as he pressed his nose down to create his old shark-fin hairstyle, "For a bunch of amateurs."

Sabo laughed, grinning proudly. "You did it, Naguri!"

"Awesome!" Luffy called excitedly as he jumped up and down. "This is so cool!"

"I owe it all to you," Naguri called, now beaming like they had never seen before. "Thank you. I'm really grateful to you all."

"It must've been hard to work on that alone," Nami said, before realizing why this all seemed so familiar. Not long after they left Alabasta, they ended up coming to an island where an old man lived all alone with his goats.

"Zenny!" she called out at once and they all looked at her.

"Zenny?" Brook repeated in confusion.

"I thought this all felt like déjà vu," she said thoughtfully. "Zenny the money-lender! Or I guess it would be Zenny the pirate now."

"What are you all talking about?" Franky asked.

"I remember," Robin said, thinking back, "Not long after I joined, and before we went to Sky Island, we met an old man who washed ashore an island and lived there alone for about twenty years with his goats."

"Twenty years?" Brook repeated in surprise.

"I know him!" Chopper called out, pleased that he remembered, as the boys continued to admire the ship. "He said that he wanted to be a pirate but he was too old to do that."

"But he shouldn't have let that stop him," Brook said softly, thinking it over.

"That's just what Luffy said to him. I was just thinking of what Naguri said about how his age didn't mean anything when it came to dreams," Nami said smiling softly at the memory, "I thought if sounded familiar. Luffy used those same words when Zenny said that he was too old to set sail."

"You think he was thinking about Naguri?" Sanji asked her.

"I think that maybe the old man was part of his inspiration to how you should live your life the way that you want to," Robin smiled.

"I hope that Zenny's doing alright," Chopper said softly, remembering how weak the old pirate's heart was when they said goodbye.

"I'm sure he's just fine," Usopp said confidently. "He was a touch old geezer, and I'm sure that we'll meet up with him again."

"You think?" Chopper asked, still looking worried, but he was smiling now.

"Yohoho, sounds like a plan to me!" Brook said happily.

"Hey, Naguri," Sabo called. "Are you going to set sail now?"

"Yeah, are you?" Chopper cried out, forgetting again that he couldn't hear him.

"Yes…" Naguri answered, before thinking it over for a brief second. "But first… I have to see your training through all the way to the end!" They all looked at him in confusion. "Today, we'll start the long awaited great tiger hunt, noshi!"

"Oh, we get to watch a tiger hunt," Zoro said grinning. "This should be good."

"Think that they'll do it this time?" Usopp asked. "I mean, their last attempt was…"

"Pathetic," Sanji answered for him.

Robin giggled as she said, "I'm sure that it will be exciting no matter what."

"Seriously?!" Sabo called excitedly.

"I'll definitely win!" Ace declared. "Then I'll be done with this lousy training!"

"I'll be the one who wins!" Sabo argued with him

"I won't lose!" Luffy yelled.

"Fat chance," Sanji kidded and soon enough, the memory disappeared until they were all standing outside the forest, staring into the darkness of the trees. "Here it comes," Sabo had just said. And sure enough, there he was…

Eyes glowing gold, knocking over trees with its large feet… it kept coming closer and closer… the tiger.

"I know that it can't hurt us or anything," Usopp gulped. "But it's still big."

"You aren't afraid are you?" Franky asked teasingly.

"What?" he yelled. "Of course not! I've become a brave warrior of the sea! There's not a foe out there that can stand a chance against me!"

"Shut up! I want to watch this!" Nami called, watching as the tiger came closer to them.

"You heard Nami!" Sanji yelled. "Shut up you morons!"

"You're the moron!" Usopp and Franky yelled.

"You're all morons, so shut up!" Nami screamed, now hitting all three of them to get them to shut up.

"Alright! Now it's time!" called a voice and they looked up to see Naguri there, watching them—and possibly ready to jump in should something happen. The tiger roared and of course, Ace was the first one to charge ahead. The tiger raised its paw and struck at him, "I knew you were gonna do that!" Ace yelled and dodged it in midair as he continued forward and struck it in the face.

The tiger howled with pain as Ace taunted it, "How'd you like that?"

"Well, he's gotten stronger," Usopp cried out eagerly, "Before he couldn't even hurt that thing at all!"

The tiger's tail came around and hit him like a whip so that Ace was flown feet away and landed painfully on the ground. As the tiger went for him, Sabo pulled a fishing rod and used it to wrap its neck up. "You let your guard down!" he called to it, now pulling hard on the pole. "It's my turn now! Just give up and get caught!"

"But it's not a fish…" Brook said anxiously, "He can't just…"

Predictably, the tiger's head pulled its head back and Sabo was launched forward so that he was also struck down like Ace had been.

"Sabo! Ace!" Luffy yelled as he threw a punch at it as it now decided to go after him. This time, he did manage to hit it, but it just bounced back like it was a mosquito bite. The tiger leapt into the air, determined to go after its helpless prey…

"NO!" the Straw Hats all cried out, momentarily forgetting that he obviously makes it out of this mess alive.

"LUFFY!" Ace screamed, jumping back to his feet.

"RUN AWAY!" Sabo called and also ran.

The Straw Hats were halfway towards the tiger when it struck… but in the end, after the dust cleared, the claw didn't even touch Luffy… Ace and Sabo were there, struggling to hold up the great paw to protect him.

"They stopped it!" Usopp cried out triumphantly.

"That's how you do it!" Nami cried out.

"Yeah, but they can't hold it off for long!" Sanji said apprehensively, seeing the stress in the boy's faces as the fought to stay on their feet. "It's too strong!"

"Hey!" Ace called, realizing this too. "You two! Lend me a hand!"

"Now that's a surprised," Zoro said, in an impressed tone. Looks like Ace was finally starting to see it.

"What?" Chopper asked them, looking up at him.

"That's the first time he's ever asked for help," Robin explained smiling.

They all moved out of the way, just in time. Sabo went one way, Luffy and Ace went off in another. "We're not fast enough to take him down on our own," he said as they ran, "But Luffy, with your ability, we might be able to beat it." As Luffy nodded, Ace hollered over his shoulder, "Sabo! I'm counting on you!"

"What are they planning?" Usopp called, now lost.

"The only way they can hope to beat it…" Zoro answered simply.

"Is to work together!" Brook finished for him, remembering with pride how they all worked together to take out Oz at Thriller Bark.

"Right!" Sabo called back, turning and began taunting the tiger to come to him.

"Is he crazy?" Nami yelled.

"Can't be helped," Sanji said. "They need a distraction."

"Luffy!" Ace's voice called again and they looked to see that Luffy had grabbed hold of a couple trees and was pulling back. "Pull back as far as you can!" Ace commanded before yelling to Sabo, "Sabo! This way!"

"You don't need to tell me twice!" Sabo yelled and he sprinted towards them.

"Lure him in as close as you can!" Ace called and went back to Luffy.

"I get it now," Zoro said grinning. Predictably, it was Usopp who said what it was they were planning.

"A slingshot!" Usopp grinned as Luffy went back as far as he could go with Ace in front of him, getting ready to launch. They waited as Sabo came closer and closer… gasping for breath.

"He won't make it!" Franky called fearfully.

"Yes, he will!" Usopp countered excitedly.

"Gum Gum…" Luffy began before his body snapped back like a slingshot and launched Ace forward with extra speed and force; with Ace finishing the attack, "ROCKET!"

They all blinked in surprise to see the familiar attack, and with the extra push that Luffy gave him; Ace was strong enough to beat the tiger. Crashing into its head, and crushing its neck. For a moment, it stood there—a stunned look on its face—and then with a giant crash, it fell backwards and hit the ground… where it didn't move.

"THEY DID IT!" Chopper yelled as the tiger's eyes rolled back and he lay there motionless.

"WE DID IT!" all three of them yelled, punching the air ecstatically.

"So that's how that attack was thought up," Robin giggled as the three danced around, celebrating their victory, "Well, I think that was the first successful attack Luffy was able to pull off."

"That explains a lot," Franky said with a laugh.

But then the smiles on Sabo's and Luffy's faces faded as it sunk in to what just happened. "So I guess… that makes Ace the captain, huh?" Sabo asked slowly.

"I trained so hard to!" Luffy yelled out upset.

Sabo clapped him on the shoulder, "Just give it up, Luffy."

"But that's not what happened," Brook pointed out confused.

"It's alright," Zoro said, still looking at Ace, who was looking as if he didn't know what he was supposed to say. And then…

"Sheesh, don't worry about it," Ace said, running a hand through his hair. "I won't become the captain."

They both looked shocked and asked, "Why not?"

"It's not like I defeated the Tiger Lord on my own," he said, turning away, now sounding uncomfortable.

"But he was so keen on being the captain before…?" Chopper said slowly, not understanding.

"I think he felt that he didn't deserve it," Sanji stated. "Like he said, he didn't beat the tiger on his own. But he's alright with it."

"Ace," Sabo smiled.

"Well, whatever," Ace said coolly. "Someday you two are going to be begging me to be your captain anyway."

"You gonna beg?" Sabo asked Luffy.

"Never," Luffy answered happily.

"YOU JERKS!" Ace yelled and suddenly they were fighting.

"Ah, brothers," Franky said fondly as some of the others laughed.

"Good to see that they're back to normal," Usopp laughed.

Ace looked up in time to see Naguri leaving. "Old man!" he yelled up, Naguri looked back. "The next time we meet up, I'll win! Don't let anyone beat you until then!"

"See ya!" Luffy yelled, waving merrily up at him.

"Take care, okay?" Sabo agreed.

Naguri didn't move for a moment before he smirked. "I'll be waiting for you at sea, noshi."

He then pulled off his cloak and tied it to his hammer.

Chopper gasped in awe, "It's a flag!"

And so it was… his old pirate flag of two hammers for crossbones and a fist for a skull. He held it high and proud… his way of saying goodbye.

"This is all getting to be amazing!" Usopp cried out as they stared up at the flag of the Naguri pirates. "Even after all these years, he still held onto that flag as his treasure!"

"I hope he found his crew!" Chopper said smiling as this memory faded away.

"Something tells me he did," Robin agreed, her own heart feeling warm at the thought, "he may have been old, but he had a lot of heart and wasn't afraid to chase his dream."

"Think we'll run into him someday?" Nami asked, "Him and Zenny?"

"Hard to say," Zoro replied.

"I hope so!" Franky cried out in determination. "I'd love to meet such a SUPER person!"

"I say, if we're destined to meet up, then we will," Brook said as the darkness faded away so that they were back outside the boy's hideout. But unlike most times, where it had been bright and sunny, it was now dark and a strong wind was threatening to blow them away. Ace was at the wheel, "Here it comes!" he cried out, as if they were at sea in the middle of a storm. "The storm is coming!"

"If you're gonna come, then bring it on!" Sabo cried out a challenge at the sky. "Blow stronger!"

"Now he really should be more careful," Robin said in amusement. "Never mess with Mother Nature… believe me, mothers can have a cruel side too."

Luffy was up in the Crow's Nest, clinging to the flag, watching it all, "Awesome!" he yelled with laughter ringing over the wind. "It keeps picking up!"

"Luffy!" Ace yelled from below. "Don't let the flag be blown off!"

"Yeah!" Sabo agreed. "Losing your flag is the ultimate disgrace for a pirate!"

"Oh, so that's why he's so protective of that flag?" Nami asked.

"Well, it is true," Robin said. "For a pirate, it is considered to be no greater disgrace than to lose the flag. All those that sail under a jolly roger are supposed to show respect for their chosen flag and honor it always as it represents the crew itself. Once the flag is gone, the crew can no longer sail under it and therefore everything linked with the flag is gone."

"Really?" Chopper said, thinking of when their flag was stolen.

"Yep," Zoro said with a nod, "And I think I rather die than live in disgrace like that."

"Alright! I got it!" Luffy called down. "Now… come at us, strong gust of wind!"

"Show us what you've got, great storm!" Ace challenged out.

"Bring it on, jerk!" Sabo finished, and that must've been when Mother Nature lost her temper. At that moment, a great gust of wind really did come, blowing Luffy out of the crow's nest and as he hung on tightly, his rubbery arms stretching out.

"Help me!" he shouted as his brothers came running over to see.

"What are you doing, Luffy?" Ace called before they both laughed.

"Don't just laugh!" Luffy yelled, looking scared. "Pull me in!"

But on they kept laughing… the Straw Hats all joining in as well.

"Like I said," Robin laughed as they heaved Luffy inside the safety of the treehouse, "Mothers can be cruel."

"Looks like they learned that the hard way," Franky added, tears of laughter in his own eyes.

"But what is the point in us seeing this part?" Sanji asked as the memory faded away again, eventually reappearing with the sun out and the three boys were heading in the direction of the Gray Terminal. And judging from the broken branches and the layer of rainwater around them, it looked as if this was the next morning. But really, what was so important about seeing that storm?

"That was amazing!" Luffy exclaimed with a giggle, skipping along, picking up a piece of a broken branch and waved it around. "We made it through the storm!"

Sabo sighed. "Yeah, but our base was wrecked though."

Ace shrugged, unconcerned and said, "It's not that big a deal. We just need to get some more wood and we can fix it."

"He's unusually cheerful today," Usopp pointed out Ace's optimistic attitude all of a sudden.

"After a fierce storm, it shows you to slow down and enjoy life a little more," Brook said happily, "That shall be part of my newest song!" he then he strummed his guitar and started to sing to himself, _"Just when the storm is at its worse…"_

"Save it for when we get out of here Brook," Zoro interrupted.

Luffy ran in front of the other two as they walked and turned to face them, walking backwards. "I wanna find a telescope!" he declared.

Ace rolled his eyes. "Dumbass, you think something like that's just going to fall out of the sky?"

"I don't know," Nami commented to herself, "Luffy does usually get what he wants."

"I'm sure that he'll find one somewhere in the Grey Terminal if he looks hard enough," Sanji said. "Those bastard nobles seem to throw out everything. I'm sure there's a telescope or five out there somewhere…"

Sabo chuckled. "In that case, I'd rather find a cannon."

"If a cannon fell out of the sky, that'd be awesome!" Luffy exclaimed with a grin.

"That would be," Franky said happily, thinking that over.

"Unless it hits you and breaks your head open," Robin said and so that Brook and the 'Weakling Trio' screamed at the mental image.

The three boys laughed loudly, as they stepped into Gray Terminal and began rummaging through the mountains of garbage, looking for anything useable.

"Man, I still can't understand why Luffy would be keeping Sabo a secret," Usopp said, watching them all search. "I mean… this is something really special. You think that he would want to tell us all about his brothers."

"That's what's been bothering me," Nami said softly, biting down on her thumb, suddenly uneasy again. "It doesn't make sense."

"What doesn't Nami-san?" Brook asked.

"Just what Usopp said earlier about Sabo being a surprise if we meet him out here on the seas," Nami elaborated.

"What about it?" Usopp asked her. "What? You don't think that we'll meet him?"

"Well, when you think about it, that theory did sound plausible," Nami explained as Luffy kept shifting through the garbage, "I mean, that's what happened when we met Ace after all… but…"

"But what?" Chopper asked not seeing what the problem was.

"But the thing that doesn't add up is that we _met_ Ace," Zoro finished for her. "We've seen the two of them together, but neither one of them ever mentioned Sabo. Why is that?"

"Luffy might not have ever mentioned them, but you think that Ace would've said something about there being another brother," Sanji added. "But they never did."

"It's been bothering me all this time," Nami said frowning.

"I'm sure that there's a reason," Usopp said slowly. "Maybe Ace was in on the secret too and…?"

"I know that I never had the pleasure to meet Ace like most of you," Robin interrupted, "But I have to agree. Something doesn't seem right here. I also remember what Garp said back at Water 7. Or rather what he _didn't_ say."

"And what's that, Robin-san?" Brook asked confused.

"Just that he left Luffy and Ace with a close friend to continue their training, but he never mentioned Sabo either," she said, frowning in thought. "It's like he never existed or something."

"What are you saying?" Usopp said, pointing to the boys. "Sabo clearly exists! Unless… this isn't really Luffy's memories?"

"Oh, I'm sure they are," Robin disagreed. "I'm not saying that Sabo never existed, I'm just saying that so far in the present, no one's mentioned him, and that's not normal."

They stayed silent for awhile, watching the three of them continue to search; Sabo went off a little ways ahead to find more wood as Luffy continued to look for his telescope.

"You guys…" Usopp said softly, not liking where this conversation was going. "What are you saying? You don't think… you don't think something happened to Sabo do you?"

"We aren't saying anything like that," Sanji said slowly, "Just that we're something important missing here."

"If the three of them were all that close, you think we would've heard about him at least once," Nami finally sighed. "I don't know, I've got a bad feeling about this."

"Well, what then?" Chopper asked, "You think that Sabo gave up on his dream or something?"

But before they could answer him, Luffy threw aside some more junk and whined to Ace, "It's no use, Ace, I can't find a telescope."

"Luffy," Ace groaned, picking up some scraps of wood as he spoke, "Why are you looking for a telescope? Go find some useable wood instead."

"You really think that he'll listen?" Zoro asked sarcastically.

"But Ace…" Luffy whined loudly before Ace sighed.

"Whatever," he grunted. "Let's go find Sabo; maybe he found something."

"You know, just wishing for something isn't going to help him find a telescope any faster," Sanji commented.

"Doesn't stop him from trying," Zoro answered. But even as they followed after the boys, he got that uneasy feeling as well. And he couldn't help but feel it get worse with every step he took as they continued looking for Sabo.

***Earlier***

Luffy had walked through the dark wall and the next thing he knew was that he was suddenly blinking in the bright sunlight. This wasn't what he expected… he blinked several times as he quickly adjusted to the light.

"Well," he said to himself, "At least I'm out of that dark cave. It was starting to get boring."

He looked around the clearing in the forest, but that was when he noticed something strange. It all looked strangely… familiar. As he walked forward, glancing around, and he suddenly realized where he was and he felt as if all the air in his lungs had disappeared. He stared at what he saw… it was the old training sight.

He remembered the last time he saw this place—over two years ago. The morning that he left Dawn Island, he stopped by here for one final training session by himself before he said goodbye to the bandits and headed down to the village.

It looked exactly as it did that day. This place had always been so special to him—this was the very same place where he used to fight and train with his brothers.

Walking around, he stared at everything… it was just as he remembered it. The wide clearing that was surrounded by trees on all sides while the pipe staffs that they had when they were kids, now covered with rust, were leaning up against the biggest trunk. The scoreboard that they used to keep track of their matches was still there, still worn out and the chalk almost completely faded from the old wood, and even the familiar rock that he once destroyed when he finally perfected his Gum Gum Pistol.

If he had thought about it, he might've wondered how he was here. But he smiled sadly as he walked over and placed his hand on the scoreboard, tracing the chalk gently as he thought back to those happy days.

"That's not like you," said a hauntingly familiar voice behind him that made Luffy freeze, "To be so lost in thought, eh, Luffy?"

Feeling as if his heart was being squeezed tightly, he spun around to see him again. Like in the dream he had before… Ace was there, leaning up against a tree, watching him, with that same big grin on his face. His eyes shone brightly as he looked at him, his finger a single burning flame as he tilted his hat up to look at him.

"You're here a lot sooner than I thought you'd be," he said, smiling brightly. "But good thing that it's only temporary. You aren't supposed to be here just yet… little brother."

Luffy stared at him, unable to speak as he slowly stumbled over to him. "A-Ace?" he croaked out, as if afraid that he would disappear if he spoke too loudly.

Ace grinned a little wider. "The one and only."

"This can't be real," Luffy croaked out, shaking his head hard. "You're… you're supposed to be…?"

"Dead?" Ace asked brightly, pushing himself up from the tree and walking over to him, poking Luffy's forehead. And unlike his dreams—or rather his nightmares—this time Luffy could feel it… he could feel his brother's finger poking at him.

"I am," Ace confessed.

**(What do you all think? I thought that it was about time that we find out where Luffy had been all this time, and I decided to show that. As for the parts with the tiger hunt and Naguri, I always thought that was important and I couldn't help but think of Zenny when I watched this. For those of you who don't know, Zenny was in the anime after Alabasta, but before Sky Island. I couldn't help but think of Naguri when I was watching it so I put that in. I hope that this chapter was worth the weight, and yes, next time we see the sad part where Sabo was taken away. The Straw Hats are getting suspicious and are now starting to realize that something's wrong… as for Luffy meeting up with Ace again—yes, it is the same Ace that we all know and love. But to what's going on, you'll find out later on. Again, hope you enjoyed it.)**


	9. The Noble's Insidious Plan

**Chapter 9: The Nobles Insidious Plan**

***Luffy***

Luffy just stood there gapping at his older brother, who continued to grin at him as if he had just told a funny joke.

"But… you're dead…" Luffy said quietly, more to himself than to Ace.

"Pretty much," Ace answered brightly.

Luffy blinked a few times, trying to make sense of this. Ace was dead… he knew that. But he was here with him… so that could only mean…?

"AHHHHH!" he screamed out in panic, gripping his head as he stared around him in horror. "THAT MEANS I'M DEAD TOO?!"

What had he done? How'd this happen?

"Oh-no my crew will kill me if I died!" he kept crying out. He died before he could become the King of the Pirates? He couldn't believe this! "Sabo is going to be disappointed with me for dying too!"

"Luffy…?" Ace said, but Luffy wasn't paying attention.

"So this is the great beyond?" Luffy asked himself, staring around him, "Oh, this all sucks! After those two years training with Rayleigh too! Well, they better at least have some good meat up here! Oh wait… what if I'm in hell? Then that means that there can't be! WAHHHHH! You mean I'm in Hell?!"

"IDIOT!" Ace yelled and bonked him hard on the head to snap him out of it.

"OWW!" Luffy howled, glaring at Ace, "THAT HURT!"

"Dammit Luffy you aren't dead!" Ace shouted at him, for a moment this was just like how they used to argue ever since they were little kids. It was so familiar that Luffy had to stop—unable to stay angry with him.

For a few minutes, the two just stood there looking at each other. A light breeze swept over the training site, ruffling their hair as they continued to gaze long and hard. Finally, Luffy blinked.

"I'm not?" he asked as Ace shook his head, the smile still tugging at his lips.

"No, you aren't," he said seriously as he gently bumped his knuckles against Luffy's forehead—silently telling him what an idiot he was being. "It's a long story…"

"But I don't like long stories," Luffy whined, still not understanding any of this.

Ace only grinned wider, and seeing that smile made Luffy feel as if his insides were being squeezed. "I know you don't," Ace admitted happily, "But you'll enjoy this one. Let me explain…"

***Straw Hats***

The Straw Hats meanwhile were following the memory of the two boys through Trash Mountain, looking for Sabo. Ace kept picking up scraps of metal and pieces of lumber every few feet—just anything he thought might be useful to repair their base. While Luffy wandered a little behind him, still looking for that telescope.

As Usopp watched, he had an idea to make a special telescope for the Sunny when he got back—one that could see for endless miles around in all directions. But just as he was getting around to designing it, Ace suddenly dropped everything he was holding and pulled Luffy down to the ground.

"Ace—what?" Luffy cried out startled.

"Shhhh," Ace hissed, forcing his head down. "Stay quiet."

"What's going on?" Chopper asked, not liking the tense look on Ace's face.

"Don't know," Zoro said, his hand on his sword, though there wasn't any need. He just felt more in control of the situation with his swords with him, "But I'm guessing that Ace heard it too."

"Voices," Sanji added softly, his head turned in one direction. "Over there…"

Whether or not Luffy did as he was told, or he heard something as well, he stayed quiet as the two boys crawled up the mounds of junk and cautiously peered over it. At the bottom of the mountain was Sabo… and he was completely surrounded and outnumbered.

"Oh, no!" Chopper cried out, "He's in trouble!"

"Don't worry," Franky smirked as Ace and Luffy shared a look and they nodded together. "Like they're gonna leave their brother to fight all that on his own. Looks like some thugs from town want some revenge from a beating."

"I don't know about that," Robin said with a slight frown as she got a good look at the men. "They don't look like ordinary street thugs…"

"Wait…?" Nami started slowly, a horrible idea suddenly coming to her, "Are they…?"

"I never would have guessed that one of the infamous three troublemakers was a noble," of the men said—and judging from his clothes and demeanor, he was the leader of this whole thing. He was a tall man with short hair that was all tied back on the top of his head so that they looked like stripes, while the rest of it flowed down long and unkempt down his sides. And as he smiled, half of his molars were missing in an alternating pattern… but what really got them was the air of malevolence that surrounded him. They didn't know who this man was, but whoever he was, the Straw Hats all suddenly hated everything about him.

"Who's that?" Luffy asked Ace quietly as Ace put a finger to his lips to silence him.

"Bluejam, how do you know that!?" Sabo yelled at once.

Ace paled, looking uncharacteristically fearful.

"Bluejam?" Brook repeated in confusion, knowing that he heard that name somewhere before, "Oh, I know that name! That's the pirate captain who they… robbed from… oh dear…"

"Oh, shit," Sanji hissed, feeling a little sweat fall from the side of his face. "This isn't good. They may be good fighters, but they're still kids here. And they're up against heavily armed pirates."

"Bluejam?" Luffy repeated quietly before his eyes widened and he got up. "Sabo's in trouble!"

He looked ready to jump down and fight, but Ace grabbed him. "Not like that idiot," he hissed, looking around quickly. That was when he spotted an old barrel lying near them and he grinned. "Perfect," he said, leading Luffy to it. "We'll use this!"

"Hey, don't hurt him now," Bluejam smirked evilly, calling from below them.

"Why do I seriously doubt that?" Usopp said, wondering just what Ace had planned, hoping that he'd hurry up.

Sabo knew that he was in trouble, but he couldn't run with so many pirates surrounding him on all sides. However, when the first idiot tried to grab him from behind, he kicked him hard, yelling out, "You wanna fight, bastard?!"

"In this case, there are only two things he can do," Robin said softly. "Fight… or flight."

"I vote for fight," Zoro smirked at the idea.

"You always chose fight," Usopp yelled at him. "He's just a little kid and he's up against pirates on his own! He can't win!"

"How said that he was going to be alone for long?" Franky asked with a merry laugh, jerking his thumb to Luffy and Ace.

"Hey, what're they doing?!" Chopper cried out, and they looked up in time to see the two climb into the barrel.

"It looks like they're gonna…" Sanji said, planning it out in his mind before he grinned. "Oh, this is gonna be good."

Before Chopper could ask, Ace kicked off and suddenly they were rolling down the hill of junk towards the pirates. At once, the men were all distracted at the sight of the rolling, and before the nearest pirate—the one standing behind Sabo—could react, the barrel went slamming into him, knocking him clean off his feet and he was out cold before he hit the ground.

At the same time, when the barrel hit him, Luffy and Ace broke out and charged ahead to join Sabo.

"Ace! Luffy!" Sabo cried, grinning wildly and turned back, ready for a fight now that his back-up had finally shown up.

Luffy was stumbling around, looking slightly green as he muttered, "My eyes are spinning…" and then he fell to the ground with a loud 'flop'.

"That is cute," Robin smiled. Ace on the other hand turned to Sabo, quickly asking if he was alright.

Sabo just nodded with a relieved smile, "Yeah."

Ace turned to face the pirates, still grinning—clearly not afraid at all. "If all three of us work together, these guys aren't scary at all!"

"That's right!" Luffy exclaimed, getting back to his feet, his dizzy spell over with, "We even beat the Great Tiger of Mount Corvo!"

"Yeah, after fighting that thing, these guys don't seem that scary," Chopper said, thinking of that monster tiger.

But the Bluejam pirates were now looking angrier than ever as they slowly advanced towards them.

"You little brats!" one of them yelled threateningly, holding up his sword.

Ace just kept on smiling. "To finish this fight quickly," he said to his brothers, "we just have to go for the captain!"

"Yeah!" Luffy yelled in agreement and they ran together, Sabo dropping the supplies he gathered and they took care of business. Ace and Sabo were dodging out of the way of the blows, Luffy not even bothering with the clubs as he let them hit him, only for the blunt weapons to bounce off uselessly.

"Now that's teamwork!" Brook called happily as Luffy jumped up and head-butted one man.

"Now they're starting to really become a force to be reckoned with," Franky cheered on with Usopp and Chopper.

"They're all monsters," Nami said shaking her head, but still grinning like everyone else. What she did wonder however was how Sabo could be one… with Luffy and Ace's fathers, they had reasons to be… she glanced over at Sabo, wondering just how he got so strong having been born a noble—especially the son of the type of nobles who hated something so harmless as dirt. Then again… she reasoned with herself as Sabo clubbed one man out with little effort, he had practically grown up here in the Gray Terminal. She supposed that you had to get strong just to survive here.

Once the boys took out all the underlings, they ran at Bluejam—looking ready to finish the job.

"Yeah!" Usopp yelled, punching the sky eagerly, "You show him!"

But Zoro was frowning at the annoyed look on Bluejam's face. He didn't look worried at all—even with all his flunkies taken out and the three boys charging ahead with those pipes. It wasn't until his hand went flying to the gun that was tucked into his belt did he understand.

"Hell, they better run!" Sanji yelled, but even as he shouted, Bluejam had pulled it out and fired. Thankfully, it missed them but it was a narrow miss… just inches from Ace's foot—it was enough to stop them all dead.

"What!?" Ace exclaimed, having not guess he'd do that. That was when they all ducked and covered, with Ace and Sabo hiding behind what looked like a broken ship's mast, and Luffy actually covering his face with a plank of wood on the ground.

"Did he really think that would be enough to stop a bullet?" Nami asked, sweatdropped. "Not that he needs it since he's bulletproof but still…"

"I can see that these guys aren't used to fighting someone with guns," Sanji said with a frown. "I hope that they weren't over-confident."

"Using guns can be a bit of a hassle," Usopp said knowingly, "There's the loading and the gunpowder… though lethal when they hit you, they can cause a lot of trouble in the heat of battle. It is easier to use swords because they don't need re-loading."

"Wow, you really know a lot, Usopp!" Chopper said in amazement.

"Hee hee," Usopp laughed, rubbing his long nose with his thumb. "What'd you expect? I'm Master Usopp! Of course I'd know something as trivial as that!"

"Why's Luffy-san hiding at all though?" Brook asked, not understanding why Luffy looked scared, as he poked his head around the board to look at the gun.

"Well, if they're not used to fighting against someone with a gun, then what are the odds of him knowing that he was bulletproof?" Zoro asked him. "It's too bad… if they knew that, then he could've taken him on."

"Is this where he gets shot and finds out?" Nami asking carefully, not liking where this was going.

"I'm not sure, Nami-swan," Sanji said, having a bad feeling as well. "But I'm sure we'll find out."

Bluejam had them where he wanted and laughed darkly. "Alright brats," he said, grinning evilly, "Stay where you are."

"Like we're scared of a gun!" Ace yelled out, though he didn't sound as confident as he did a moment ago.

"Behind you, Ace!" Chopper screamed out, but he might've just not said anything for all the good it did. At that moment, a few extra men had jumped out from some of the junk and grabbed them from behind.

"Damn," Zoro hissed, "It was a trap!"

"They must've guessed what they were going to do, and had some of them hide until they were distracted," Robin summed up as Ace and Sabo cursed at the men, fighting to get free.

"Move!" screamed Luffy's voice, and they saw that while they were watching Ace and Sabo being grabbed, another had Luffy pinned to the ground—it was hard to hear what he was saying with his face held down like that, but they could all understand what his words were… "Or I'll send you flying!"

"They should've run while they had the chance," Robin whispered softly.

"For once, I agree," Franky said, now starting to sound unnerve, as he looked at the pirates—who were looking very pleased with themselves. "They look like they mean business. You think they're still angry about the loot they took from them?"

"Of course they would be," Nami said angrily. "What kind of pirate wouldn't be angry at someone who stole from them?"

"Not only did they steal from them, but they injured their pride by not only getting robbed by a bunch of pint-sized kids, but also beating up some of their men who worked directly for them," Zoro added.

"Even if they give it back now," Sanji said frowning, biting down on his cigarette, "I doubt that they'll be letting them go that easily."

"But they'll be alright won't they?" Chopper asked, looking scared.

"Y-Yeah," Usopp stuttered, trying to convince himself that. "I mean, come on…" he laughed nervously, "Luffy's obviously makes it out of this alive doesn't he? I'm sure that they'll find some way to get out of this in one piece. All they have to do is stay calm and run when they get the chance!"

"You think?" Chopper said, sighing in relief, "Thank goodness. I was worried."

But Zoro just kept frowning, that uneasy feeling back in full swing, and it was worse than ever. For some reason, he couldn't stop looking at Sabo, who continued to try and get free. "Let me go, you bastard!" Sabo yelled, looking ready to bite down on the man's arm, but stopped dead, staring horrified directly at the Straw Hats, as if he could suddenly see them. It was so sudden, that Zoro thought for a second that Sabo _could_ see them… at least until he heard the footsteps behind them and he looked behind him at once—cursing himself for not being able to sense anything while within a memory.

But the scared and shocked look on Sabo's face was enough to tell him that something was dangerously wrong. And what he saw made him freeze as well. A large group of men were approaching them, each one wearing what had to be gas masks, and each was carrying loaded rifles as they marched. But standing there with them was one man he did recognize… the same man that had called out to Sabo in one of the past memories they'd seen…

Sabo's father…

"Is that…?" Nami asked slowly, staring at Sabo's father.

"It is!" Usopp said, pointing wildly at him. "That's Sabo's dad! What's he doing here?"

"I don't know," Sanji said, his eyes narrowing as he and the armed men walked right passed them all to face the Bluejam Pirates, "But I can guarantee that it can't be good."

"You don't think that Sabo's dad isn't here to help them?" Chopper asked them.

"Looks more like he's the one behind the attack," Franky said, suddenly being vividly reminded of how that idiot Spanda used his battleships to attack Water 7 years ago.

"But why?" Chopper asked, not understanding.

Just then, Sabo's father spoke, looking over them all with a cold look in his eyes; he was annoyed, as if he could think of a million things he rather be doing than see his son. Speaking of which, he was now looking at Sabo with disappointment as he spoke, "Looks like we came just at the right time."

"Father…" Sabo whispered in terror, too scared to move. At that one word, Ace and Luffy were also staring at him shock, unable to believe what was happening.

Bluejam looked over at Sabo's dad and said, in an oily voice, "Master, he doesn't have a single scratch on him."

"Master?" Usopp repeated hoarsely, "What's going on?"

"It sounds like…" Brook said softly, realization sinking in, "That those pirates are working for him!"

"What?" Sanji yelled out. "Since when do pirates work for nobles?"

"Well, there are pirates who work for the government, or so they claim," Robin said, thinking of Crocodile with distain. "I guess anyone can be bought with enough money."

"What lowlifes!" Franky growled, "Instead of going out to the sea, they rather become servants?"

"And not just any servants," Zoro said angrily, "But to scum like them. They shouldn't even be called pirates anymore."

"Mercenaries," Franky nodded in dark agreement. "Or thugs. They do dirty work for hire."

"But why are they here?" Usopp called out, not liking the cold look in Sabo's dad's eyes. "He can't be planning on hurting his own son is he?"

Bluejam turned towards the man holding Sabo, and gestured for him to come over.

"HEY!" Sabo called, suddenly remembering how to move as he fought tooth and nail to get away. "LEMME GO!"

"Sabo!" Ace yelled.

"Oh, I get it," Sanji growled, his hands curled into fists. "Sabo refused to come back on his own, so this piece of shit hired them to bring him back by force."

"But why now?" Nami yelled. "He didn't seem to care before? He didn't bother looking for him for the last few years so why does he suddenly want him back home?"

"Most likely, word's gotten out about _his_ son being one of the three delinquents terrorizing the town," Robin answered.

"I see," Sabo's father said, looking over at Luffy and Ace as if examining a pair of stray dogs, before turning his nose up at them in disgust, "It must be because of these two. They led Sabo down a path of evil?"

"What'd he just say?!" Zoro yelled out, growing more pissed off by the minute.

"Path of evil?" Franky repeated at the top of his lungs, now seething, "Oh, I'll show him evil! Just wait until I get my hands on him!"

"Well, it doesn't mean much coming from someone like him," Nami said, her eyes flashing in rage. "He thinks that he can't do wrong after all!"

"Give Sabo back!" Luffy demanded though he didn't sound that threatening, since he still couldn't break free.

"Yeah! That's right!" Chopper yelled out loudly. "Sabo doesn't want to go back with you!"

"What do you mean _'give him back'_? Sabo is _my_ child!" Sabo's dad asked him, as if arguing with someone over a piece of property. "It is the responsibility of every child to live according to the will of their parents who gave them life!"

"What kind of reasoning is that?" Usopp yelled out feverishly, "That doesn't make sense! Parents bring you into the world so that you do everything your parents tell you to do?"

"He's a child! Not a piece of property!" Brook yelled out with him.

But Sabo's father went on by pointing a finger at them, accusing them of lying to Sabo and that they convinced him to run away from home.

"Oh, come on!" Sanji yelled, "I don't believe what I'm hearing here!"

"And Sabo had to live with this?" Franky yelled out. "I don't think it took much for him to leave!"

"Are you attempting to steal my fortune?" Sabo's father went on to ask.

"Did they ever ask you for any money?" Usopp shouted out, though they were just wasting their breaths. "Maybe if you treated Sabo like a son instead of a bargaining chip, then he wouldn't have run away!"

"I can't believe they're related," Nami cried out angrily. "If I had to live with that, I'd run too. Screw the money."

"Did you just say that?" Usopp yelled at her in amazement.

"I love money," she told him. "But there's a limit to what I'm willing to put up with! And if I had to live with someone like him?" she jerked her thumb at him, "I'd rather run and be free."

"What was that, bastard!?" Ace yelled, looking almost as angry as he did when he fought Naguri that first time. But then, the pirate holding him slammed him into the ground to get him to shut up, Ace's face was cut on something sharp and blood splattered everywhere, including hitting Sabo's father's cheek.

As if getting hit with mud, he yelled as he wiped the blood off with his handkerchief, "Hey now, pirate, be careful how you handle these children!"

"That's right!" Chopper agreed, glad to see that he was on their side now.

"You got some of this inferior filth's blood on my face!" he finished, throwing the cloth away onto one of the garbage piles like it was something disgusting.

"WHAT?!" Chopper screamed out.

"I dare you to say that again!" Franky screamed out, holding his hands up, prepared to shoot a beam—only for him to rage out at not being able to do anything

"Just a few seconds," Zoro growled to himself, his hands on his swords and flicking one out of its sheath. He was almost trying to will the memory to become real… just a few seconds to slice him to pieces… that was all he wanted.

"How can someone say things like that?" Chopper whispered as Sanji was venting some of his anger out with Zoro by getting into a fight. "To treat them like this…?"

The whole time, Robin had been quiet as she watched the scene. She had been with the Revolutionaries for the last two years, and she had seen a lot of things that made her feel sick. Dragon had been working hard for years to overthrow the World Government, and it was because of nobles like these could she completely understand way.

These people were heartless monsters, so arrogant in the fictional world that they live in, they think they could do anything they wanted… that they were better than others and they could do no wrong.

"This is just a hard view of what the world is truly like," was all she said. "Nobles like them and in the World Government are everywhere. They control everything with money and manipulation. To them, being a noble means that they are better."

But as she thought about Dragon, she felt her lips twitch a little in a smile. Even after travelling with them, she had only met their fearless leader a few times… It had been a surprise when she first laid eyes on him. While it was easy to see the family resemblance with Luffy and Garp, it wasn't as so with Dragon.

"Ace!" Luffy called out in worry, seeing the blood dripping from the cut on his brother's face.

Robin just watched everything silently. Personality-wise, Luffy was different from his father's calm and collected attitude… but as she watched the little boy still fighting to get free… she knew that in other ways they were just the same.

"Soulless bastards," Sanji hissed, "Wish I could break his face."

Sabo had finally broken free and ran to his father, standing between him and his brothers. "Please stop!" he cried out desperately, "They didn't deceive me! It was _my_ choice to leave home!"

"Yeah!" Usopp called.

Sabo's father just glared at him in irritation and told him to be quiet as two soldiers grabbed him and pulled him back. Once Sabo was out of the way, he looked back to Bluejam and asked, "I trust that you pirates will take care of the others?"

"What does he mean by that?" Brook cried out, suddenly feeling a chill in his heart—not that he had one—but he didn't bother to laugh at his joke.

Bluejam merely grinned at the idea, and continued to speak in that oily voice, "Of course we will, master."

"I feel like I'm about to be sick," Zoro said in repulsion.

"For once, we're in agreement," Sanji said, fighting the urge to throw up.

"After all, we've received payment," Bluejam went on, "Rest assured, I will finish these two so they never bother your child again."

Chopper's eyes widened and he cried out, "You mean they're…?"

Nami covered her mouth, unable to believe what he was saying. How could any father actually tell someone to kill his own son's friends?

"T-They can't really… how could…?" Usopp stuttered, feeling as if he was being punched in the gut with an iron fist. Franky was grinding his teeth together as he glared back up, feeling like he was about to lose his mind from seeing this.

"How could he just tell them to kill them?" Brook yelled out. "How do they sleep at night?"

"They have no conscience," Robin whispered, "They hire someone else to do the dirty work and tell themselves that they're better… that it's justified… and they somehow believe that."

"It's one thing to force your kid to go back home, but to say for his friends to be killed in front of him?" Sanji asked darkly, "How much do you want to bet that he would've made him watch it?"

"I think that's what Sabo's thinking of too," Zoro commented softly, watching Sabo's eyes widen in horror.

"Wait a second, Bluejam!" he screamed out, looking ready to do just about anything as he glared back to his father. He then spoke, as if every word was hurting him, "Father, it's alright! I understand!"

His father looked down at him, his eyebrows raised as he asked coldly, "What do you understand?"

Sabo didn't say anything at first, but he was biting down on his lip—looking as if he was about to be sick and burst into tears at the same time. Robin's eyes widen, recognizing that look at once… it was the same look that she knew she bore when she said goodbye to her crew back at Water 7… back when she believed that she was sacrificing her freedom for their lives.

"He isn't…?" Nami whispered—she too recognized it. She knew that look in his eyes anywhere. For that same look had been on her mother's face as she stared down Arlong…

"I think he is," Sanji gulped.

Brook nodded as Ace's eyes widened, realizing what Sabo was about to do. "He has to choose between his dreams… or his brother's lives."

"There's really no other choice," Zoro said, feeling his respect for this little boy rise greatly.

"NO!" Ace screamed out, "Don't do it, Sabo!"

Sabo's mouth was trembling as he finally croaked out, "I'll do whatever you ask." Every word looked as if they were physically hurting him, "I'll live just as you tell me to, just… don't hurt these two. That's all I ask. Please… they are my irreplaceable…" he paused for a fraction of a second before he finished, "brothers."

Luffy and Ace were staring at Sabo, unable to believe what they were hearing.

"Sabo…" Ace whispered.

"He's sacrificing everything…" Nami whispered, staring at Sabo, "Giving up his own freedom for Luffy's and Ace's sake…"

Suddenly, everyone but Brook turned to look at Robin, who hadn't moved a muscle as she stared ahead—looking completely lost in thought.

"There are some things more important than your own life," Robin said softly. "It's something I learned the hard way… it's not about staying alive… when you make a choice, you have to figure out what's most important to you. You have to be able to live with the choices you make and hope you don't regret it."

"Robin-chan," Sanji said to her softly as Brook looked on in confusion.

Sabo's father then said, "In that case, come back home now!" He said it all in such a way, that they knew that if Sabo said no, than he wouldn't hesitate in ordering Bluejam to kill them. "Stop with this ridiculous pirate game, right now!"

"It's not a ridiculous thing!" Usopp yelled at him, wishing that he could say it to him face-to-face. Sabo took a deep breath, his lip stop trembling as he held his head up.

"S-Sabo's really gonna leave?" Chopper whispered softly.

"Like I said," Brook said, "He doesn't have a choice. It's the only way that all three of them can live…"

Nami's eyes widened at that, remembering hearing those exact same words when the Arlong Pirates arrived at her home. How the doctor had pleaded with her and Nojiko to leave the island… how he explained how it would be the only way that the three of them could survive. Thinking back, she knew that he was right—though that didn't make it right. In the end, one of them was lost forever because of those pirates.

Sabo didn't react at all. He didn't say anything, nor did he even look at anyone as he slowly turned and left with the soldiers—but as he left, they could see the tears in the corners of his eyes, his face was nothing but complete misery as he walked away from everything. His dreams… his hopes… his sworn family…

"Sabo…?" Usopp whispered, suddenly stunned by this show of trust and love that these three had. Sabo was willing to give up everything and go with his father—back to a life that he hated—all just to save the two he had come to see as his brothers.

He and Chopper suddenly started to cry as the others stood there, staring at Sabo's retreating back.

"HEY! Sabo, don't go!" Ace screamed after him, but then the pirate that was holding him, slammed his face back into the ground again, warning him to stay quiet.

Naturally, Ace kept screaming, "Sabo! Just run!"

Sabo stopped for a moment, though he didn't look at them, they could tell that he was listening to every word he was saying. "We'll be fine! We were going to share our freedom together, remember!?"

"Sabo, don't go!" Luffy begged out loudly, as if something was ripping out his heart.

Ace then continued on, now sounding angry, "Are you going to let it end like this!?"

"Doesn't he understand that he's doing it for them?" Usopp asked.

"He does," Nami said, her eyes blank, remembering this same helpless and angry feeling that had been in her heart when her mother gave up all the money she had for Arlong to spare her and Nojiko. "He just can't accept it."

Sabo still refused to look at them, the tears now falling down his face—and it was clear to them that he wanted nothing more than to do that… to run away and never look back… but he still couldn't bring himself to do that.

"Sabo!" Ace screamed the loudest one yet, but nothing he said could change this… he was trapped there, watching Sabo being led away by the soldiers.

"Sabo!" Luffy screamed, fighting harder than ever to get himself up.

As he watched this, Usopp felt ashamed… this kid was a bigger man than any of those damn nobles. He remembered how he was inspired by Luffy, Zoro and Nami and decided to go out to sea, following his dream of becoming a 'Brave warrior of the sea'. But this kid had more heart than anyone else he'd seen…

As he continued to walk away, something small and broken fell out of Sabo's coat, and he stopped at that, looking ready to grab it.

What it was actually made Nami cry…

"That's…" Franky croaked out, able to believe it…

"It's… a telescope," Chopper cried out, feeling as though someone was squeezing his heart. "He actually found a telescope for Luffy…?"

But Sabo was pushed along while the soldiers stepped on it… breaking it even further so that it was just a smash bit of metal and glass. Brook and Franky had joined the 'Weakling Trio' as they cried.

"SABO!" Ace screamed out so loudly that it was as if he was trying to tear his throat… but still nothing. Sabo was led away, surrounded on all sides by guards as if he were a prisoner being led away to prison. Which, in a way, he was.

Zoro lowered his head, shaking it softly. Was this why they never heard about Sabo from Luffy? Was this the last time that they ever saw him? He didn't want to think about it, but he couldn't see any other explanation.

"That's got to be one of the noblest things I've ever seen," Franky cried, pulling a handkerchief out and blowing his nose into it. "To give up your dreams all the sake of someone you love? Sabo… you're a true man!"

Sanji was now shaking in silent rage, feeling a deep surge of hatred well up inside him. He remembered those smart-ass, pompous jerks at the Baratie… he remembered how they felt like they could walk over everyone else and expect them to just deal with it. Lowlifes who think they're better than anything ticked him off more than anything.

"Damn those nobles to hell," he growled, puffing harder than ever on his cigarette. "If they don't end up going there, I'm going to kick each and every one of them down there myself."

"Wish I could have a go at them all," Zoro said angrily, his hands itching for a chance to slice them all into pieces.

Nami rubbed away the tears. Now she was willing to do almost anything for money, she had a bad habit of accepting any challenge that comes along so long as there was treasure at the end of it all. She loved money since she had grown up so poor… but the one thing she will not do is sell out a comrade; no matter what the sum. She is loyal to her money, but no matter how much she denies it, her loyalty to her friends comes first. As she watched Sabo's retreating back, heading to the wall to Edge Town, she knew that even with all the money that Sabo would be getting… the price would've been too high.

Chopper gulped, suddenly having a hard time using his throat. "Is… is that were Sabo is now?" he asked, looking at them all, "You think he's still in High Town?"

"I'm afraid that's something that we can't answer you, Chopper," Robin said, watching Sabo disappear through the gate. She understood that feeling as well… Sabo couldn't even hope for a good tomorrow… "I think the only way we can really find out is to ask Luffy."

"How are we supposed to ask him about this?" Usopp cried at him, rubbing his head and messing up his hair. "Damn! This was a bad idea! We shouldn't be here! We shouldn't have watched this! This isn't fun anymore! Let's get out of here before we see something we're really going to regret!"

"Captain," one of Bluejam's crewmates said, "What do we do with the kids?"

He jerked his head to the still struggling Ace, and Luffy who was staring after Sabo with tear-filled eyes.

Bluejam looked over them both before he said, "Bring them back to the base."

And at those words, the memory went dark.

"Hey wait!" Brook called hurriedly. "Why didn't they let them go!? Sabo went with them!"

"You honestly expected them to fulfill their promise?" Franky asked, looking over at Robin out of the corner of his eyes. Her own eyes were shadowed over by her hair as she kept her head down.

"They agreed not to kill them," she said, her hands like fists as it brought back memories of Spandam. "But they never said that they'd let them go."

"Why those lousy…" Sanji yelled out.

The images came back, and they were now standing in a beaten up old shack—much like the one where Luffy had been tortured by Porchemy. Speaking of which, Luffy was tied back-to-back with Ace, and he glaring around at the pirates. Despite all that was happening, he showed no fear as he yelled at them all, "You bastards, untie us! Fight us again! This time we won't lose!"

"He's got balls, you gotta give him that," Franky said.

"Why did you bring us here!?" Ace demanded, his wrists working hard to break the rope.

"This is their base?" Usopp asked, staring around them.

"What a dump," Zoro said, his eye narrowed at the pirates who were all smirking at the helpless boys, as if they knew something that they didn't.

"You think that with the money that those nobles are paying them, they'd be able to afford better living conditions," Franky said bitterly.

"Those nobles have it made, huh? You kids think so too, right?" said Bluejam's voice and they turned to look behind them to see him in a chair large enough to support his bulk. He merely looked down at them both with that same smug look that made them all angry.

"They better let them go if they know what's good for them!" Usopp snapped.

Enjoying his drink, Bluejam then asked them, "They look down on all of us and think we're trash, while they live their proud, carefree lives. Wouldn't you say he's better off living as a noble?"

"What the hell are you trying to say?" Ace demanded hotly, looking ready to fight.

"Pirates are much better, of course!" Luffy added, just as angrily. "Sabo thinks so too!"

Bluejam didn't seem fazed by their words as he took another swig of his drink. "I feel sorry for you two," he said before glancing at some of his men, "Untie them."

"Right," one guy answered as he pulled out a knife to cut the ropes.

"He's letting them go?" Nami said, startled.

"There has to be some kinda catch," Sanji said frowning. "They wouldn't let them go after all the trouble of bringing them here."

As soon as they were free, they jumped up, to face them all. Luffy was glaring around at them all, almost foaming at the mouth for a fight, while Ace just stood there stiff as a board. "Why do you think a child of a noble would leave High Town and go to Gray Terminal?" Bluejam asked them as if asking what the weather would be like tomorrow. "All nobles are the same, whether they be kids or adults. There's no doubt he thought we were all fools. In his heart, he was looking down on you as well."

"Well, that's your opinion now isn't it?" Franky called out. "It doesn't matter."

"Yeah, Sabo's not like that!" Chopper cried out angrily. And they were glad to see that they weren't the only ones who thought so.

"Don't be ridiculous!" Ace yelled stubbornly. "Sabo isn't like that at all!"

"That's right!" Luffy agreed without a shred of doubt, "we're brothers!"

Bluejam looked ready to laugh as he waved his hand down at them. "Is that so?" he asked sarcastically, "Then please forgive me. But you two won't ever be going near that kid again, will you? If you're planning to do that, I've got no choice but to kill you right here. If you think he's your brother, then it's better for him too if you left him alone."

"Does he really think that they would abandon him?" Brook demanded darkly.

"If we know Luffy, then no," Zoro answered him.

"But if they do try to take him back, then they'll kill them," Nami said anxiously. "Just how are they going to get out of it?"

But Zoro didn't answer her; he was distracted by Ace's sudden expression… as if he was thinking over what Bluejam just said. Zoro frowned, wondering just what was going through Ace's head at that moment.

Luffy however wasn't even listening as he declared, "But Sabo _hates_ High Town!"

Bluejam laughed, clearly not understanding why anyone wouldn't choose to be a noble. "Just forget all about that," he said. "That's what kindness is. You'll understand when you're grown up. Oh… right…" he added, thinking something over. He then leaned back in his seat and asked, "We've had our differences in the past, what with that Porchemy's incident, but what's past is past." He then grinned almost evilly and added, "Or rather, I like strong guys like you. So, I've got a suggestion for you. It's not a half bad deal."

"A deal?" Chopper asked, confused.

"What kind of deal?" Nami asked, having been forced to make a lot of 'deals' with pirates when she was still a thief. Of course, she also knew that those pirates never intended to keep their end of the bargain, so she learned to take what she could and leave before things got ugly. "Whatever it is, I don't think they should take it. They should just leave when they get the chance and forget about them."

"That would be the best course of action," Robin agreed.

"I'm short on men at the moment," Bluejam said, "Will you help me with a job?"

The suggestion took, not only Luffy and Ace, but the rest of the Straw Hats by surprise.

"Is he serious?" Usopp cried out incredulously. "What's he thinking?! After everything that's happened, after they helped to take their brother away, what makes him think that they'll help them with anything?"

"Not only that, but they were going to kill them earlier!" Chopper added.

"That might make it hard being friends," Zoro said lightly.

"What is with you?" Usopp said to him, "Can't you at least try to act concerned?"

"Oh, it's a simple job," Bluejam reassured them, "There's nothing dangerous about it."

"Well, that doesn't sound so bad…?" Chopper said slowly.

"Which is why we shouldn't trust him," Franky asked, moving his sunglasses up so that he could glare at Bluejam. "I've got a bad feeling about this."

Bluejam gestured to the barrel in front of him where a knife held a map covered in dozens of X's all over. Nami quickly looked over it before blinking in surprise. "It looks like…" but before she could finish, Bluejam had finished speaking.

"I got a map of Gray Terminal here," he said, waving dismissively at the map, "You've got to carry some goods to the spots marked with an X. That's all. Are you up for it?"

"That's it?" Nami asked.

"Though it sure sounds easy, what's it about?" Usopp said darkly.

"I smell a rat," Sanji agreed, not liking the suspicious looks on each of the pirate's faces. "These guys are planning something and I bet you all anything it has to do with these 'goods' of theirs."

"But what could they be carrying?" Brook asked, looking at all the X's and asked, "You think that it's treasure?"

"Like they would be delivering treasure where they know two boys who had robbed from them before would be helping them?" Nami demanded.

"Besides," Zoro added, watching Bluejam roll up the map after pulling his knife out of it. "They were all over the map. What kind of pirate spreads treasure out in so many places?"

"Then what could it be?" Brook asked them.

"Something dangerous is my best bet," Robin said. "In any case, they should just leave. They don't want to be part of this."

Luffy looked as if he was about to do that, but the biggest surprise yet came from Ace who said, "Alright."

They all stared at him, Luffy included, staring at Ace as if seeing him for the first time. "How much will you pay us?"

Bluejam just smirked a little wider, and that was when the familiar darkness took over.

"I don't believe it!" Franky called angrily as they were left in the darkness again. "What was he thinking?!"

"He agreed to something that is clearly nothing good just like that?" Nami screamed out.

"Not that they have much other choice," Robin pointed out. "Even if they said no, I doubt that they'll let them go that easily."

"I don't like this," Brook said, hugging his feathered boa around himself as if hoping that he could keep warm. "It gives my skin goosebumps… not that I have skin to begin with, Yohohoho!"

"No offense, Brook," Sanji said darkly, "But no one's in the mood for a joke."

"But Sabo!" Chopper asked, bringing them back to the matter at hand. "I want to know about Sabo!"

"If he's as wild as his brothers, I'm sure that he'll make a break for it as soon as he gets the chance," Nami comforted him.

"You think so?" Chopper asked, suddenly feeling a little better. "I hope so. I like Sabo… and there's no way that they'd leave him alone like that if Sabo really hates it."

"You saw how close they are!" Usopp said stubbornly. "Like they'd sell out one of their own! But still, I think that I've had enough of Luffy's memories."

"I'm with you there," Nami said, "I learned more than I ever wanted to about Luffy."

"But aren't you curious about Sabo?" Chopper asked her.

"Of course I am," Nami said at once. "But come on, Luffy never bugged us about our pasts. I don't want to know anymore."

"Again, how the hell do we get out of here?" Zoro demanded. "I'm all for getting out of Luffy's head, if that's where we are, but we're still stuck here."

Of course, before anyone could come up with any helpful suggestions, the memory came back and the first thing they saw was Luffy and Ace walking side by side, carrying several small crates—each one that had a small pole attached with a little red flag.

Most of Bluejam's crew was surrounding them, keeping a close eye on the boys to make sure that didn't run off. Luffy stuck close to Ace, with a frown that clearly said that he didn't want to be here. Ace just kept shooting the men dark glares—just daring them to try something.

"I'm guessing that these are the 'goods' that Bluejam mentioned?" Franky asked, looking at them all suspiciously.

"What's in there?" Sanji asked with a frown as they walked along side them.

Chopper was sniffing the air a little, "It's hard to tell," he answered them, "But I'm picking up traces of… gunpowder?"

"Gunpowder?" Usopp repeated in surprise.

"Yeah," Chopper nodded. "It's hard to smell anything here in a memory, but I can also pick up traces of oil in there too."

"Gunpowder and oil?" Zoro said slowly, not liking where this was going.

"But if that's true, why are they putting them all over the Gray Terminal?" Nami asked nervously.

"Ace…" Luffy finally whined to him, carefully moving to look at him since there was a crate balancing on top of his head, "I don't like it when Sabo's not around."

Ace didn't even look at him as he said in a harsh tone, "Just deal with it. I want to go get Sabo too. But I don't know what would really make Sabo happy."

"What's he saying?" Nami demanded, getting angry again, "He's not seriously thinking that Bluejam was right is he? I mean, even Luffy sees that guy's rotten to the core!"

"It's hard to say at this point," Robin stated, looking at the sad look on Luffy's face. "They're not at all happy about this, but they aren't sure what to do."

"So what, they're just gonna leave him there?" Usopp demanded, unable to believe what he was hearing. "After everything they've been through…"

"Yes, but it is understandable," Robin offered. "After all, Sabo does have parents, money, a home… it would be hard to walk away from all that unless you are completely miserable."

"Yeah, but don't forget that Sabo said so himself how miserable he was with them!" Franky pointed out.

"Let's see how things go," Ace said, more to himself than to Luffy. "He's strong. If he isn't happy, he's sure to come back to us. We have to keep collecting the pirate fund in case that time comes."

"That's true…" Usopp said slowly, thinking over. "I didn't think about that. I doubt those nobles be able to hold him in for long…"

"But that would be dangerous," Nami said at once, "If he does escape, then they'll know that he'll go back to Luffy and Ace! And then they'd…"

"EHHHH! YOU DON'T THINK THEY'D KILL THEM?!" Chopper cried out in panic.

"They would've done it if Sabo didn't agree to go back in the first place," Sanji said, feeling more frustrated at every second.

"But… but then what're they supposed to do?" Brook asked weakly.

"The only way that the three of them can live is for Sabo to stay in High Town and for Luffy and Ace to stay away," Robin whispered. "Other than just leaving this island completely, I see no other way to ensure their safety. And even if they _did_ leave, there's always a chance that they'd find them."

"But that's not fair!" Chopper cried out. "Then there's nothing that anyone can do?!"

"It's impossible to say," Zoro said, sounding grim as the darkness faded so that they could see the next scene.

They realized that it was night, and they were back at the treehouse. Peeking in, they could see that the two boys were laying there in the mess of blankets—Ace on his side, turned away from Luffy—who was gazing up at the wall above him with a sad look.

Following his gaze, they spotted an old clock that obviously came from the Gray Terminal. It had a chunk of it taken out, but it still seemed to be working. It was past midnight, and through the feeble moonlight through the glassless window, there was a small net that held the three red sake glasses the boys had shared when they declared themselves brothers.

"I never knew that they held onto those," Nami said softly.

"I wonder what Sabo's doing?" Luffy said quietly, to no one in particular. It was very strange to see such a gloomy and unhappy Luffy, compared to the happy and energetic child they had been seeing… and the happy-go-lucky captain that they knew all too well.

"Shut up," Ace sighed next to him, obviously still awake, "Just sleep now."

Luffy looked at Ace grimly, staring at his brother's back, just waiting for him to speak.

"We promised we'd forget about Sabo for now, right?" Ace asked him, almost sounding like a recording. "So sleep."

"Alright," Luffy said, closing his eyes.

"That's a first," Sanji said, breathing hard on his cigarette, "Luffy doing what he's told."

"I just think he's not in the mood for anything else," Brook sighed, knowing how painful it was to miss someone and how much hard work it was to try and do anything when you're feeling depressed.

As Luffy started to doze off and the memory started to turn hazy, they heard Ace whisper, "He might be happier this way?"

"Who other than a stuck-up noble could be happy in that place?" Franky demanded in a hiss.

Luffy sighed softly. "Sabo…"

Ace sighed as he sat up, looking over to him, probably to tell him to be quiet and to go to sleep again. "Luffy," he said, only to see that Luffy was already pretty much sleeping.

"Telescope…" he muttered in his sleep.

"He still wants that telescope?" Sanji asked in amazement.

Usopp remembered how he planned on designing that special telescope for them all to use when he got back, and was now starting to plan it over again. He looked over at Franky, the two of them sharing a silent agreement to start working on one when they find their way back to their ship.

Ace just sighed tiredly as he pulled Luffy's blankets up around him before he laid back down and the memory faded quickly again.

"This is really getting dangerous," Robin said grimly. "They shouldn't go back. I don't care how much money they're promised."

"How can they ever think that they'll keep their word anyway?" Nami demanded as the memory changed quickly this time so that they were standing somewhere in the Gray Terminal, near the sea where a large pirate ship painted red and a gruesome red skull out front. It appeared to be the late afternoon, and there were Luffy and Ace with the rest of the Bluejam Pirates, and they seemed to be talking.

"What a crappy ship," Franky frowned at it. Honestly, don't these guys even bother to take care of her?

"I want to know what's going on here," Usopp said fearfully.

"Everything's ready, Boss," one of the pirates said with a proud grin. "We're all set. All we need is the signal and everything's ready to go!"

"Good," Bluejam grinned back. "Well done. And hopefully, this will be the last job that we'll do as the Bluejam Pirates."

Luffy and Ace looked at him in surprise.

"What?" Ace questioned skeptically. "You mean you're quitting being pirates?"

"Why would you do that?!" Luffy demanded, in a tone that he couldn't believe anyone would want to give up being a pirate.

"Yeah, why?!" Chopper demanded.

"Because there's no more need for it," Bluejam answered in a bored tone. "We were made an offer that we couldn't refuse. Now that it's almost over, we have no more need to stay as criminals."

"Idiots," Ace snapped. "You all honestly think that you're gonna retire just like that?"

"He makes a fair point," Brook said. "Once you leave and become a pirate, you normally can't ever return to a normal life."

"Now that we're finished, might as well tell you everything," Bluejam declared. He grinned evilly and said, with no hint of a joke in his tone, "Tonight, we're gonna set off those 'packages'. And when we do, the Gray Terminal will be nothing but a pile of ashes by tomorrow morning."

The Straw Hat's eyes all widen in horror as they realized what those boxes of gunpowder and oil were for.

"They're going to…?" Nami whispered, her eyes widening and sweat pouring down her face.

"What are you talking about?" Luffy demanded hotly.

"Don't you understand?" Bluejam demanded rolling his eyes, "We're going to burn down the Gray Terminal."

"Huh? Burn down Gray Terminal!?" Ace demanded in horror, sure that he must've heard wrong, "Why are you doing that!?"

"They're gonna destroy it?" Chopper cried out. "But why do that? What's the point?!"

"You fool, don't scream!" Bluejam scolded, looking around to make sure that no one else could hear them. "We can't let anyone else know about this!"

"Not let anyone else know?!" Usopp cried, remembering all the marks on that map, and just how much explosives must've been in each one of those crates. "If he sets all those things off then the entire Terminal will be going up in flames!"

Sanji's cigarette dropped from his mouth. "And everyone in it as well."

"But why would they do something so terrible?!" Brook called in panic.

"This is serious! We gotta tell everyone!" Luffy yelled, looking ready to start running and screaming out what was going to happen to everyone he saw. "He's a bad guy, just as I thought!"

"For once, I have to agree with him," Sanji said, it was strange seeing Luffy as the rational one here.

"I told you not to scream," Bluejam said firmly, looking to his men and telling them to hold them down. Two of them came forward and grabbed the boys from behind and held tight as they fought and struggled to get free.

"But I don't get it," Franky yelled. "Why destroy the Terminal? What's the point?" But then Bluejam answered his question…

He repeated, "I'm not the mastermind."

"But who would hire them to do something like this?!" Usopp cried out, still staring at him in horror, as Ace stopped struggling; freezing where he was as he listened.

"There was oil and explosives in the boxes that you guys carried yesterday and today," Bluejam confessed with a sick smile. The boys had turned pale at the thought—understanding what they had done and they're part in it.

"It's not their faults," Nami said at once, "They didn't know."

"But they still feel responsible for helping them," Zoro said darkly. "Not that I think Bluejam needed the help in moving those crates, but the idea alone is enough to make them feel guilty."

"But can't someone explain who's behind this?" Usopp called loudly as Brook and Chopper cried out in fear. "Who would want the Terminal burned to crisp?"

"I think I might have an answer," Robin answered, her eyes turning to the wall—where the nobles were living—"I just hope that I'm wrong."

"But Robin why…?" Chopper began just as Bluejam started to laugh.

"There will be a massive fire that no one can escape from," he continued to explain to the boys with that same grin. It was clear that he couldn't have cared less for what they were doing.

"They're really going to kill everyone here?!" Nami cried out, thinking of all the people they saw rummaging through the junk here.

"Those soulless bastards don't deserve to live," Sanji growled, fire already appearing near his legs. "If we ever meet up with them for real in life, I'm going to kill them all!"

"Only if you save Bluejam for me," Zoro told him, his hand on his sword.

"This is bad!" Chopper cried out, tears now forming. "Those people are all going to be burned to death! I can't think of a worse way to go!"

"To disregard the lives of innocent people!" Brook called furiously.

"No…" Luffy whispered softly, voicing what they were all thinking, his eyes widening in alarm.

"Are you out of your mind!?" Ace screamed out, now fighting harder than ever to break free.

But all Bluejam did was laugh—which only caused them all to become even angrier. For Nami, that laugh was too similar to Arlong's laugh—the one he used after he killed her mother. One that sometimes still haunted her nightmares; these men were just like them. Evil monsters…

"Even punk kids like you two are freaking out?" he asked smugly. "But now you know about the plan." He calmly walked towards them both, "We can't let that go."

"I was afraid of that," Robin said softly.

"So they're really gonna kill them?!" Usopp screamed out.

"AHHHHH! Luffy-san and Ace-san are dead meat!" Brook called.

"They are?!" Chopper screamed.

"Would you all calm down?!" Sanji yelled, "They don't die remember?"

"Why not just let them go?!" Franky called out. "It not like they can stop it now can they? And I doubt that anyone will believe them, but at least they can give them all a warning before it's too late!"

"I wonder just what those scumbags were promised to agree to all this," Zoro said softly.

"I want to ask you something before the fire," Bluejam said casually, bending down to eye level with them. "Say you two? Do you have a treasure hidden away somewhere?"

"He's asking about that now at a time like this?!" Sanji cried out.

Ace glared at him angrily, keeping his mouth shut, but Bluejam already knew that they did. "Care to tell me where?" he asked them. Predictably, Ace didn't say anything as his cold eyes continued to glare into his own.

But Bluejam didn't seem interested as he stood up tall again. "Fine, don't tell me," he answered them, waving his hand to his men and gave them their orders, "Tie them to the ship. They can burn with the rest of the garbage."

"WHAT?!" screeched most of the Straw Hats at that as the boys were taken inside and they had to run after them to see what was happening.

"He's really just gonna let them burn like this?" Usopp called.

"Of course they are," Nami whispered softly, painful flashbacks of her miserable eight years working for Arlong came flooding back. "Men like him don't care how many lives they ruin."

"Men?" Brook demanded. "They're no men! Cowards more like it!"

"You're letting your own ship burn as well?" Ace yelled at him as they were being tied to a post—Luffy kicking and screaming the whole time. "How are you all gonna get away?!"

"That's a good question," Franky said, "But still, this ship is almost worn through. I doubt that it'll make it far anyway."

"No point," Bluejam told him, "We won't need it anymore."

"How could they just abandon their own ship like this?" Usopp screamed out, thinking of the Merry and her sacrifice for them.

"Won't need it?" Nami whispered, before getting angry again, "What's going on here?!"

But no one could answer her as they could only stand back and watch as the boys were tied to the post and left there. They sat there the whole time, both of them struggling to free themselves. For hours they fought and pulled at the ropes, desperate to get out—the whole time they could hear the wind blowing outside… growing stronger and stronger with each passing second.

**(I know I've taken a little longer with this chapter, but I was having a lot of trouble with it. I hope that it was worth the wait and you enjoyed it. As I watched these scenes, I only realized just how similar how this situation was to Nami's when she was little, so I decided to put that in. The next chapter will be the Terminal Fire. Until then…)**


	10. Goodbye Sabo, My Brother

**Chapter 10: Goodbye Sabo, My Brother**

"This isn't good!" Usopp said nervously, hearing the wind picking up outside, rattling the walls with such force that it felt like it was going to blow away.

"At this rate the fire is going to spread so quickly…" Nami whispered, going out to check the weather and frowned heavily at what she saw. She came back in and quickly explained, "The wind's blowing off from the sea, and if tonight's like this, along with all the explosives we saw, then the whole Terminal'll be covered in flames in a matter of minutes!"

"So they're really gonna let them burn to death?!" Brook called fearfully as the boys continued to fight tooth and nail to cut themselves free.

"Those bastards…" Franky growled, cracking his robotic knuckles together. "If I ever meet them, I'm gonna shove my foot so far up his…"

"Luffy!" Ace called desperately, unknowingly interrupting Franky. He had been looking around for something and spotted a window down near the far end of the hideout.

Luffy, who was crying, stopped and turned his head as far around as he could to listen. "See that window back there?" Ace asked him quickly.

"Yeah?" Luffy asked, sniffling as he looked down at, not understanding, "but why?"

"I get it," Robin said, "If they can get a shard of glass they can use it to cute the ropes."

"And if Luffy could get his body to stretch out and break it…?" Sanji said, a smile coming back to his face. "Genius."

"Do you think you can stretch your arm out and break it?" Ace asked, still pulling on the rope.

"I—I don't know!" Luffy said, trying to move his fingers, but was bound so tightly that it was almost impossible.

"Well, try something!" Ace snapped at him. "If you can't use your hands then try your feet or something!"

"Ok!" he gasped out, moving his foot up as high as he could. He then stuck his tongue out as he concentrated, kicking out foot as far as he could go. Like a rubber band, his foot shot out, but fell several feet short of the window.

"Damn it," Zoro said frowning, now starting to feel apprehensive. This wasn't good. Luffy still didn't have too much control over his own powers, and time wasn't on their side. If they didn't hurry, then they'd be going down in flames… literally.

"Try it again!" Ace called, and though he sounded calm, they could see the panic starting to rise in his eyes.

"I'm trying!" Luffy said fearfully, pulling his leg back so that he could try again.

"They gotta hurry!" Usopp said, biting his nails, cringing every time he heard the wind knock into the hideout.

"I'm sure that they make it out in time," Robin said, though even she sounded a little unnerved. "They're not the type of people who give up easily."

"Come on, Luffy!" Chopper called, now cheering Luffy on. "I know you can do it!"

Sanji puffed harder than ever on his cigarette as he glanced through the window and at the slowly darkening sky. "If I had to guess, they're sure to set off those crates when it's dark and everyone's sleeping."

"That way, by the time they woke up and realized they were in trouble, the fire would cut off any escape route and they have nowhere to go," Robin agreed. "That sounds like that's how they'd do this."

"That's horrible!" Chopper yelled furiously.

"But what's the point?!" Brook repeated for what felt like the millionth time. "Why would anyone want to do this?"

"Dunno," Sanji said, "But Bluejam doesn't seem smart enough to have come up with a plan like this."

"He did say that he wasn't the one behind this," Nami whispered to herself as Luffy kicked out again. Usopp and Chopper both cheered, but their voices died out when Luffy missed out. He was closer than he was before, but was nowhere close.

"Come on," Ace said, breathing hard. "If you don't wanna die, then put some effort into it!"

"I DON'T WANNA DIE!" Luffy yelled out in panic.

"THEN KICK THAT WINDOW OUT!" Ace yelled at him. "BREAK THAT GLASS AND PULL BACK A PIECE AND I'LL TAKE IT FROM THERE!"

"OK!" Luffy yelled back, "JUST STOP YELLING AT ME!"

"While I think that Ace could've handled it better, he gets to the point," Franky said bitterly.

Luffy tried again and again to reach the window, and each time he got closer, but each time he seemed to get more frustrated so that he looked ready to cry. The feeble light through that window was quickly fading and the sounds of chirping crickets could be heard outside—it was so quiet—no one could ever imagine what was about to happen.

And as Nami predicted, the wind hadn't died down. If anything, it had picked up and was now rattling the ground as well as the walls.

"Come on, Luffy-san," Brook encouraged the little boy, hoping that he could somehow hear him. "You're almost there! That was the closest one yet!"

Ace was listening hard to every little sound, looking around hurriedly as if he thought that they're were ghosts hiding in the corners.

"Come on, Luffy," he said loudly, "We don't have time for this! If we want to get out of here and see Sabo again, then we have to get out NOW!"

"I know," Luffy said, panting softly, but there was determination in his face. "I can do this!"

"Yes, captain," Robin whispered softly. The future captain that she knew had never thrown the towel in with anything he'd done in life, so it only made sense that he was just as stubborn as a child.

Luffy was breathing hard, determined to get out now. This time he put his feet together, the bottoms of each touching, and this time he kicked them both simultaneously. "Gum Gum… SPEAR!" he cried out, and this time, he stretched farther than ever. The sound of the window breaking as his feet went smashing through it was more than enough to renew their optimism.

"Good going!" Ace called, a little hope now shining in his eyes as he twisted around to get a good look, and saw the large shards falling to the floor.

"He did it!" Nami said smiling, "They might make it out of here after all!"

But no sooner she said that did they hear it. Somewhere far off, they could hear the defiant sounds of explosions and they froze, the smiles quickly fading. Gasping, Usopp went running to the window and looked out to see for himself.

"Hell they're outta time!" Sanji called out anxiously.

"SHIT!" Ace called out, hearing the noise and now fighting harder than ever. "We took too long! Luffy! Grab a shard and let's get out of here!"

"Right!" Luffy said, and he was able to carefully pick up a large shard with his toes before his feet snapped back.

As his legs return to its normal size, the glass shard fell near their hands so that Ace was able to grab hold of it and immediately began sawing away at their bindings. But soon they could see the light shining through, glowing red like a sunset, but they could hear several more explosions setting off much closer than before, and knew that it was only a matter of time before it reached the boys.

"The fire'll be here in minutes!" Nami cried out just as Luffy started crying again when he heard the next round of explosions going off closer than ever. Ace kept calm as he continued to cut through, but the longer they stuck around, the hotter the room seemed to become and the thicker the air.

"At this rate, the fire will get through those ropes faster than Ace will," Robin said.

"Why must you tell us things like that?!" Usopp cried out as Chopper began screaming.

"Relax," Zoro said, though he was gritting his teeth together as they continued to watch Ace struggling, squeezing down on the shard so tightly that he was cutting his hand.

Suddenly, a part of the roof started cracking and with an almighty CRASH it caved in. Thankfully, the boys were far enough away from it that it didn't fall on top of them, but the fire was now inside the hide out and was now licking the walls, creeping across the floor and smoke was filling up the space.

At the sight of the fire, Brook, Usopp, and Chopper screamed out, backing away. The rest of them stayed far back, but they couldn't feel anything. Even when Sanji was brave enough to venture close to the fire and let it lick his lower leg—he felt nothing but air. At the sight of the flames, Luffy was screaming out in terror, but unlike them, he could feel the heat and was breathing in the smoke.

The fire spread rapidly through the rest of the place, the wood breaking apart and turning to ash, burning higher and hotter with each second.

"Come on Ace!" Usopp cried out, the room filled with so much smoke that it was getting harder to see anything.

Luffy was now in full freak-out, screaming out, "It's hot! It's hot!"

But with one final slash, Ace was able to cut the bonds and they fell away from the post.

"He did it!" Chopper called out, tears of relief in his eyes.

"Yeah, but they're far from out of danger!" Franky yelled out as the rest of the roof was creaking dangerously. "They got to get out of here!"

"If the fire didn't spread all the way here, they might be able to get out," Nami said as Ace pulled the ropes away and stood up. "Damn!" he cried out, staring around him, looking for the way out. "We didn't want to be involved in this!"

Luffy was still on the floor, now smashing his little fists against it, screaming out, "We can't get away! I don't wanna die!"

It was strange to see Luffy as such a helpless child, but they couldn't blame him either as the fire continued to grow.

"What are they waiting for?! They gotta get out now!" Franky screamed, seeing the roof breaking apart. "Another minute and they'll be trapped!"

Ace spotted their pipe staffs on the floor near the doorway and then screamed at Luffy to stop complaining if he didn't want to be left behind.

At once, Luffy stopped crying and said, sucking his lips in, "It's not hot."

"Harsh but effective," Franky said, even with all this, sweatdropped at that.

"They don't have time for a debate here!" Zoro called out, as Ace grabbed Luffy by the back of his shirt and pulled him to the door, grabbing the staffs as he did so. He tossed Luffy his and they went running out through the door just as they heard the rest of the hideout fall apart.

"That's a close call if ever I've seen one," Nami cried out as they ran after the boys from the house. But the outside world was even worse. The fire had spread quicker than they thought—the trash surrounding them was now an inferno and Trash Mountain was quickly being reduced to ash as the smoke picked up and made it impossible to see farther than a few yards.

The fire was melting the scraps into pools of liquid-burning metal, paper and wood acted as kindling, and there were still minor explosives coming from inside the mountains of junk from whatever volatiles were thrown out with the junk.

"It's like we're in hell!" Usopp screamed out, dodging the falling burning pieces, though there was no need.

"Up there!" Robin told them, keeping up with Luffy and Ace.

"Whoa it's hot!" Luffy cried out, the fire grazing his skin—before he realized what he said and cried out, "No it's not!"

"There's fire everywhere!" Ace cried out, wiping the sweat out of his eyes as he took the lead and went running down the pathway with Luffy on his heels.

"This is terrible!" Brook called out, wishing that the darkness would come so that they couldn't see this anymore. "I can't tell where anything is!"

"How do they know where they're going?" Usopp shouted.

"I don't think they do! In this smoke they'll be disorientated!" Chopper cried out, "It's confusing them and they could be running around in circles for all we know!"

As the boys continued to run, Luffy was gasping for breath, going back and forth between keeping calm and freaking out. "I can't breathe…" before remembering what Ace said before and crying out instead, "Yes I can…"

But as he breathed in, he coughed and gasped out, "The air is hot! No, it's not!"

"While I admire him trying to stay calm, now isn't the time," Zoro said, staring around him, cursing himself for not being able to sense anything here. "Damn, I can't tell where anything is here!"

"Not that means much," Sanji said, "You're sense of direction would only kill them faster even if you were there."

"What was that you idiot cook?!" he yelled.

"Bring it on Moss-Head!" Sanji yelled.

"SHUT UP BOTH OF YOU!" Usopp screamed out. "WE HAVE BIGGER PROBLEMS!"

Ace moved back from some burning metal as Luffy continued to try and keep himself calm. He didn't look at his little brother, but he spoke in a voice that they hadn't heard yet from the child Ace. It was… oddly gentle. A more comforting voice than the one he usually used with Luffy. "It's going to be alright," he said softly, though still firm at the same time, "I'm here with you."

Zoro's eye widen a little before a small smile played on his lips, the first smile he had since before Sabo was taken away. Looks like Ace finally found something he wanted to protect. He was going to use his strength to keep his brother safe.

At his tone, Luffy looked a little surprise as well at the sudden change in Ace, but he gulped down and nodded a little as he calmed down and continued to follow after him, much more serious than he had been, but in control of his emotions.

"I'm amazed at how Ace can do that," Nami said, gasping for air as she ran with them. "I mean, not even we can talk like that to Luffy and have that much of an effect."

"Bond between brothers," Robin smiled as she went running right through a fireball, "It almost makes me jealous."

Onwards they ran, though it was getting harder to tell where they were going. The Gray Terminal fire was growing and even for the Straw Hats, who were breathing clear air and able to run through fire, it was impossible for them to tell where anything was. They could only imagine how bad it was for the two brothers.

"Run Luffy!" Ace called.

"I can't go any faster than this!" he cried back, but still he pumped his legs harder.

"Why don't they try rocketing out of here?" Brook suggested.

"With what?" Nami demanded, "There's nothing for him to grab onto that isn't already burning! And they don't know where they are! They could end up going the wrong way and into a place where they'd be surrounded! If they can get back to the Middle Forest, then there's a chance!"

"But isn't a forest the worst possible place to be during a fire?" Usopp cried out.

"Normally yes," she gasped out, jumping over a melting pipe. "But with the wind on the sea, the fire most likely hasn't spread near the forest yet. If they can get there, they should have a clear path up to the mountains! They should be safe there!"

"Come on guys!" Chopper called to them, almost willing them to run faster. However just as he called out, the top of one of the towers of debris crumbled and fell towards Luffy. Luffy didn't notice it until it was just above them.

"LUFFY!" Zoro, Nami, and Usopp screamed out, just as Luffy screamed—suddenly unable to move. At his cry, Ace looked back and saw what was happening. With inhuman speed, he jumped, tackling Luffy and rolled them out of the way as the flaming wreckage reduced the ground to charcoal almost on impact.

"Nice save Ace!" Usopp called, his heart beating so fast that he thought that it was about to burst. He didn't know how much more he could take of this.

"Luffy!" Ace gasped, quickly pulling Luffy back from the fire as it blocked the way they came from, "Are you ok?!"

Luffy only nodded, trying to hold back the tears as Ace hugged him tightly, his eyes wide with emotions they hadn't seen before. Terror… fear… protectiveness…

He was scared, really scared.

"A-Ace…" Luffy cried out, biting down hard on his lips to keep him from screaming out.

"I told you didn't I?" Ace asked him harshly, leading him back down the path, "I'm here with you ok?"

"Now there's the Ace that we met in Alabasta," Sanji said smiling in spite of himself.

"Nothing can bring people together like almost dying together," Robin proclaimed as Usopp shivered.

"Robin you have to stop that," Franky said as Chopper cried out for them to keep running. Onwards they ran, the smoke thicker than ever, now almost completely surrounded on all sides by fire.

Pulling his goggles down, Usopp tried to get a better view on where they were. Desperately searching, he spotted something just through the thick smoke—and he cried out in joy as he realized what it was.

"There!" Usopp called, recognizing the trees that towered over them, "They'll almost out!"

But Ace was forced to jump back as another pile of burning wood almost hit him. Luffy was looking around, "I wonder if those old men escaped safely."

"This is no time be concerned about other people!" Ace yelled at him, straining his eyes as he stared around, searching for the right way.

"Even after all this, he's still worried about everyone else?" Franky asked, suddenly deeply touched by that.

"How can he be worrying about others when they're shit-deep in all this?" Sanji asked, "He's too nice sometimes. What a pain!"

"He's a pain alright," Nami said, smiling at her captains big heart, "But we wouldn't want him any other way, right?"

"Nope," Zoro answered almost teasingly, "Why else would we let him be captain?"

By now, Ace was coughing violently, bringing them back to what was happening here.

"This is getting worse!" Chopper said, his eyes almost budging out of his head, "They've been here too long! All this smoke! Any longer and they won't be able to breathe!"

"And if that happens they'll pass out and be burned to death," Robin said, freaking some of her crewmates out, but even she was sounding concerned.

"Damn…" Ace cursed, struggling for air. "I don't know where I am."

"Just run forward!" Usopp told them. "You're almost out!"

Almost as if he heard him that time, Ace stepped forward, but before he could start running they heard someone yell behind them, "Who said you could get away, you brats!?"

The Straw Hats felt themselves freeze, which was ironic considering where they were, but they knew that voice. Slowly turning, they spotted them coming after them from the flames. Like demons from the pits of hell, they came at them. Each carrying a weapon, their eyes oddly blank, and twisted smiles on their faces—as if they were loving every minute of this hellish world.

"Bluejam!" Luffy exclaimed in shock.

"What the hell are they doing back here?!" Usopp yelled, taking a step back, "I thought that they cleared out long ago!"

"Yeah, they sure seemed keen about escaping before," Franky hollered out.

Ace was as stunned as the rest of them, but it quickly turned to anger. "Why are you still here after setting the fire!?" he screamed out, "You were supposed to have escaped by now!"

"My bet is that these idiots couldn't get out," Zoro said.

"Most likely they set off too much explosives and were trapped," Robin said, though even she doubted her own words. She did not like those insane looks of delight on their faces.

"Oh, shut up, you little shit!" Bluejam shouted, taking them all by surprise.

"What's going on here?" Zoro shouted out. Before Bluejam had always been sadistic and cruel, but in a cool and collected way as if he planned everything out. But here, he was raging and storming in annoyance…

All at once, he suddenly started that grin again. It sent shivers down Zoro's spine, he knew that something was wrong.

"We're hopeless, you know," Bluejam chuckled.

"For once, they're making sense," Sanji said, throwing his cigarette away as he watched.

"We have an unforeseen dilemma," Bluejam went on, "Human are strange creatures aren't they? When you hit rock bottom, you can't stop laughing."

"What's with them?" Usopp asked, as the rest of Bluejam's crew all started to laugh along with him, their smiles almost fake now. "They're creeping me out."

"They are acting weird," Luffy whispered nervously to Ace, not liking this either.

"They're not well," Brook said, the look in their eyes was much different from before… changed… almost… possessed even.

Nami's eyes widened. "Oh, no…" she whispered so softly that she wasn't sure they heard her. "They've gone insane."

"What?" Usopp asked just as Ace's eyes widened and he cried out for Luffy to run.

"Don't let them go!" Bluejam ordered as the two ran in the opposite direction. Now, even the fire seemed safer than with these pirates.

"What's going on?" Chopper asked, "They're not normal!"

"They've lost their minds," Robin said frowning as the whole crew surrounded the boys, not letting them pass. "I don't know how, but they've become like demons now. There's no humanity left in them now."

"Man, this just keeps getting worse all the time!" Franky yelled, now sounding close to losing his mind as well. "I don't see how it could get any…?"

"Don't say it can't get worse because it just might!" Usopp yelled.

"But you just said it!" Chopper yelled at him as he hit himself in the head.

Bluejam slowly lumbered forward to them, "Now now…" he said still smiling, "We worked together, we're friends. We have to die together."

Nami stood back, now feeling terrified at what was going to happen next.

"This guy's scaring me," Usopp said, sweat pouring down his long nose. "He's seriously sick here."

"We don't wanna die with you!" Ace snapped. "Not in a million years!"

"Seriously, who'd wanna die with him anyway?" Sanji asked, though there was anxiety in his tone.

"You're so cold," Bluejam said, still grinning as he walked forward. "Come to think of it, you haven't told me where you keep your treasure. I'll save it for you before the fire gets it. So tell me where it is!"

"Wait a minute," Franky said, incredulously. "You mean that he came back here just to get the money?"

Ace obviously felt the same way because he was crying out in disbelief, "Your life in danger and all you care about is treasure?"

"I see, and I thought that Nami-san was greedy," Brook said and Nami kicked him hard in the head so that he hit the ground with a painful bang.

"My priorities are always life first and then money!" she yelled at him.

"True," Usopp said, she always made someone else risk their life, and then steal the money when no one else was looking. He didn't dare say this out loud because Brook was whimpering on the ground.

Bluejam laughed harder before asking, "If you don't care, then tell me where it is."

Ace's eyes darkened. "You've gone mad."

"If you're not going to get it, it'd be a waste," Bluejam said in a strangely calm voice, clumsily moving a little closer. "If nothing is done, it's going to be reduced to charcoal like my ship. What a waste."

"Wait, I thought that he didn't care about his ship?" Usopp said quickly.

"That piece of shit," Franky growled, furious that anyone could treat a ship, a work of art, in such a manner. "Then again, it's out of its misery. If I had to be the ship of a bunch of low-life murderers like them, then I'd probably want someone to finish me off."

"Don't be ridiculous!" Luffy yelled out at him, and they all suddenly reminded at how hard Luffy fought to keep that a secret from Porchemy. "That treasure is…"

"Alright, I'll tell you," Ace interrupted loudly.

"EHHH?" Chopper called out. "But they all worked so hard to get that treasure!"

"Chopper," Zoro said firmly, leaving no room for an argument, "It's just a pile of gold. It's not worth dying over."

Nami didn't say anything, but though she knew he was right, she couldn't bring herself to say it out loud. Perhaps it was habit, but she couldn't bear the thought of anyone leaving money like that behind. But this time she'd let it slide. Of course she much rather that Luffy and Ace escape alive… even if a bastard like Bluejam did end up with all of it. She supposed that they could always go out and steal more if they made it out in one piece.

"Ace," Luffy yelled, "you and Sabo spent a lot of time…"

"Sabo would understand!" Ace yelled at him, and Luffy stopped to stare at him. Ace kept his back to him as he continued to glare at the pirates. "What matters the most now is your…" he stopped there for a second before he corrected, "what matters the most now is our lives."

The Straw Hats all stared at Ace's resolve. They didn't miss that little slip-up and it was all clear to them. Right now, Ace no longer cared what happened to him… here, he was thinking of Luffy, and Luffy alone.

"He's not thinking about himself here is he?" Brook asked softly.

"Right now, he wants to get Luffy out of here," Sanji explained quietly. "He probably feels like it's his fault that they're in this mess since he was the one who agreed to work for scum like them in the first place. There's a chance that he feels like he couldn't live with himself if Luffy got hurt because of him. Moss-head was right for once… it's just money. It's not worth dying over."

Luffy sniffled a little as tears quickly dried up in his eyes from the heat. It was hard to tell whether he was sad over the money, or he noticed the slip-up in Ace's words. "Ace…" he said softly, before he blinked the tears away and glared at Bluejam.

Ace then walked over to a pile of junk that was left mostly unburned and picked up a piece of wood, "If I tell you, you have to promise to let us go!" he said to them all firmly.

Bluejam merely grinned at that as the other pirates all looked on eagerly as Ace quickly drew up a crude map using a charcoal-burnt stick as a pencil. Zoro couldn't help but feel deeply impressed at how calm Ace was here as he finished up the map by drawing an X on the tree.

"You know, he could always lie about where he hid it," Nami added hopefully, "Just draw any tree there."

"It's not worth it Nami," Robin said, "Besides, they might think they're lying about it."

"Wait, he's gonna let them go isn't he?" Chopper called out worried.

"I highly doubt it," Sanji said, gritting his teeth together. "But hey, if they're this insane, they might be able to get away before they notice it."

Ace finally handed the wooden map over. "We keep our treasure from the last six years in this tree," he said calmly.

"I see," Bluejam said as he greedily took the map and looked over it with that same hungry glint in his eyes. Luffy sniffled again as he watched all the hard work that he and his brothers had done go to such a criminal.

"Don't cry," Ace said to him firmly, not letting him see how hard it was for him too. "It's alright. This is not the end."

"He's something else," Brook said in awe. "With everything happening… the fire, and now Bluejam, he's taking all this well."

"Funny how it takes your life being in danger for you to see your priorities," Robin said smiling knowingly, remembering how she had come to the realization that she wanted to live. Just when it looked like the boys were going to be ok, Bluejam passed the map to one of his men, while two more grabbed Luffy and Ace from behind.

"HEY!" Chopper yelled, "What's he doing?!"

"What's it look like?" Nami demanded. "Twice Ace took a pirate by his word, and twice he was betrayed!"

"But they told them!" Usopp yelled out.

"Like Nami, they know that there was always a chance that they could've been lying," Robin said.

"What are you doing!?" Ace demanded as he fought and lashed out. "I told you where it is!"

Bluejam chuckled to himself, "You're right, this isn't the end. Which means you could be lying. You have to come with me."

"But then they'd be no way for them to escape!" Franky called out in alarm.

Nami stared around at the flames. "The wind's picking up again!" she screamed. "They have to leave this place now or it'll be too late!"

"No way! Then it would be too late to escape!" Ace screamed out, now losing his cool and struggling harder than ever, "Why don't you go on your own!?"

"Come on!" Brook called earnestly, "You have no more reason to hurt them! Just let them GO!"

However Bluejam lost all façade and pointed his gun at Ace's head to get him to stop. He looked angrier than ever, which only served to make him look more twisted than before. "You don't want to mess with me now!" he yelled out threateningly, "I'm determined to make a comeback even if it means stealing from kids so I can take revenge on the nobles. And your brother is one of them."

"Revenge?" Brook repeated questionably.

"On the nobles?" Usopp finished for him, before his eyes widened in understanding.

"I can't say that I'm surprised," Robin said, having already guessed this when she first saw the pirates coming through the flames.

"So you mean…?" Chopper said slowly.

"The nobles betrayed them," Robin nodded, "I should've figured that was what happened. They're the ones who were behind the fire, and they left them here to die with the rest of the trash."

"But they were following their orders," Chopper said horrified, "Even so, they locked them in here?"

"It all makes sense," Robin confirmed, "The nobles wanted the Gray Terminal taken care off so they hired him to destroy it. They must've promised him a lot of money in return… perhaps even something like a full pardon for their crimes as pirates."

"But they never intended to keep their promise," Zoro nodded in understanding, "I get it. Can't say that they don't deserve it, but that's low even for the nobles here."

"I'm not broken up about it," Usopp said, as the rest of the crew nodded. "They deserve everything they got for all they did."

"But again, why?" Nami demanded.

"That doesn't matter now," Sanji said as Luffy was glaring fiercely at Bluejam for what he said about Sabo.

Bluejam didn't bother look at him as he clicked his gun back, still pointing the barrel at Ace. "They think they're so special and look down on others as if we're trash!"

"Actually, that's true," Robin said, having seen that countless times in the past. "But at the same time…"

"Sabo isn't like that!" Ace yelled defiantly.

"Yeah!" Chopper yelled out, his hooves in the air. "Don't you dare say anything bad about him!"

"He's the same as them, fool!" Bluejam screamed at him, his eyes now almost popping out, "He was with you both just to feel superior!"

"That's not true!" Luffy screamed at him, refusing to listen to what he was saying.

"His parents are loaded—he doesn't have to worry about anything," Bluejam yelled at him. "It was just a pastime to him! He was looking down on you guys and laughing to himself holding his nose!"

"Just because his parents were like that, doesn't mean that he was!" Brook called as Franky cracked his metal hands together to calm himself down. "Don't drag Sabo into this!"

"Stop talking badly about Sabo!" Ace threatened wildly, his temper quickly growing out of his control again.

"Yeah, Sabo just wants to be free!" Luffy yelled out before he finally escaped the pirate's grip by biting down on his arm, causing him to scream in pain. Luffy jumped down and turned to face him, his staff held high, ready to attack.

Pulling out and raising his sword high, the pirate screamed out, "You little shit!"

"DUCK LUFFY!" Usopp screamed, but too late; as Luffy tried to block it, the sword cut right through the pipe and leaving a deep gash that stretched across half his face.

"Luffy!" both Nami and Ace screamed in terror.

"OH NO!" Chopper screamed out as Luffy screamed in agony and fell to the ground, rolling around as he gripped his hands over the bleeding wound. "He almost lost an eye there! He needs a doctor!"

But the pirate then raised his sword directly above him, the point held down as he declared, "I'm going to kill you!"

"DON'T YOU TOUCH HIM!" Usopp and Brook screamed out.

"Let go of me!" Ace yelled in a panic as the pirates laughed when the sword thrust down, Luffy's uninjured eye widening in terror through his fingers.

"LUFFY!" the Straw Hats screamed out, for one heart-stopping moment, thinking that it was all over. Until…

"Don't touch Luffy!" Ace screamed out so loudly that he might've torn his throat. But at those words, without warning, they felt it. Even though it was a memory, they could feel the shockwave coming from Ace, for a moment everything froze. The fire around them died down, the men stood there with stunned looks on their faces… and that was when they fell. All pirates, save for Bluejam, fell where they stood—each one out cold before they even hit the ground. Ace jumped down from man who held him as the sword narrowly missed Luffy's face, and instead sinking into the ground next to his head.

As soon as the sword missed its target, time seemed to start up again and the fire was back in full force. The Straw Hats all stood there, staring in shock at Ace, who had flung to his little brother's side. "LUFFY! LUFFY! Are you ok?!"

"That was…" Sanji croaked out, his eyes widening.

"Conqueror's Haki," Zoro finished for him. "Unbelievable… Ace is only ten! I mean, it took a war for Luffy to learn how to use it!"

"It's not that surprising, considering how strong Ace was," Robin said, though she too looked amazed.

"But why isn't Luffy asking him how he did that?" Chopper croaked out, "And why isn't Ace wondering how…?"

"I doubt they even notice," Robin said, as Ace put his hands over Luffy's and moved them away so that he could see the deep gash that was bleeding everywhere. "Considering all this, Ace probably didn't even realize what he'd done."

"How could he not notice that?!" Nami demanded.

"That's some major, SUPER, power!" Franky added.

"When his brother was in danger, he subconsciously used it," Robin answered them, "In his desire to save Luffy, he tapped into power he never even knew he had. He didn't think about, he almost 'willed' it to happen." She stepped forward to see Ace closer, "Whether or not he could use it from this point on is a question I don't know."

"But still!" Brook called, while Bluejam stared at his men in horror, not understanding what just happened. "So amazing! Such power at such a young age!"

"This power is sometimes awaken through time of great stress and desperation," Robin said, "Haki responds to desperation by growing even stronger."

"You don't get more stressed out than this!" Usopp called as Chopper nodded firmly by his side.

Luffy was still crying as blood seeped through his fingers and Ace looked over him. But as his full attention was on Luffy, Bluejam grabbed him by the back of his shirt and pulled him away.

"What did you do!?" Bluejam bellowed as he slammed him into the ground.

Ace slowly tried to get up. "Dammit…" he cursed when Bluejam stomped down hard on Ace's chest so that he couldn't move and the gun was being pointed at his head again. "You creepy little brat!" Bluejam yelled, now almost foaming at the mouth and they knew that whatever sanity that had been there finally snapped. "Do you want to make a fool out of me too!?"

"Well if it happens enough times it can't be that hard!" Sanji challenged. "Why not pick on someone your own size!"

"Shut up, you scumbag!" Ace yelled at him without a trace of fear.

"You bastard!" Bluejam yelled with his finger on the trigger. Luffy had rolled over onto his stomach and looked up "Ace!" he screamed, even worse than when Sabo was taken away. "DON'T DO IT!" he begged Bluejam.

Nami had a violent flashback of her mother being killed by Arlong, and her eyes widen in terror. This couldn't end like this! Chopper covered his eyes just as the gun was fired. As he heard it go off, he had horrific memories of being shot at by the villagers of his home island and felt the need to be sick.

But as he cautiously opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was that the rest of his crew was staring there with their jaws open wide at the scene before them—each one of them with identical expressions of shock on their faces. Chopper fearfully looked back to Ace, almost expecting to see Ace lying there bleeding with a bullet hole in his head…

The gun was still smoking, but the bullet had missed Ace's face much like how the sword had narrowly missed Luffy before; instead, there was a small hole in the ground next to him that was also smoldering. The only reason that it missed was because a familiar figure had grabbed hold of the gun barrel and forced it away at the last second.

"DADAN!" Chopper and Luffy called at the same time.

Dadan's eyes were narrowed dangerous as she held up her long ax, her thick orange hair swishing around like the blaze around her. "Stop it, you sea cretin!" she took a swing at him, finishing by calling out, "Let go of Ace."

"I can't believe she showed up!" Nami exclaimed in shock. Dadan swung and Bluejam held his sword up, blocking it—thus saving his life, but forcing him away from the boys.

"LOOK THERE!" Brook called, pointing behind them, and they could see a large group of people fighting their way through the fire. When they were close enough, they recognize who they were.

"The mountain bandits?" Usopp cried startled. "What're they doing here?"

"Don't know, but I'm not complaining!" Franky cried, finally grinning again. "They came here to save them!"

The little man named Dogra was the first one to Luffy, and helped him to sit up as he looked over his injury. Luffy looked terrible, the bleeding wound was now covering half his face with blood, and Luffy kept his right eye tightly shut.

"What are you guys doing here?" Luffy asked him, wincing in pain.

"Finally, we found you!" Magra called in relief.

"How could they find them in all this is a miracle itself!" Nami said loudly.

"These are pretty serious wounds, Luffy," Dogra said worriedly, looking over him. "Are you okay?"

Luffy looked towards the bandit. "Dogra…" he croaked out.

Dogra was now glancing around quickly, "I don't see Sabo anywhere?!"

"Sabo went home," Luffy explained quickly. "He's not here."

As Dogra sighed in relief, he called for one of the bigger bandits to come over and carry Luffy.

"I don't know where they've been all this time," Robin smiled, "But it's a good thing that they came when they did. Another few seconds and Ace would be dead."

"Robin why must you scare us?" Usopp begged.

"Looks like they do care after all, Yohoho," Brook said happily as Ace turned to face Bluejam, Magra now trying to hold him back.

Bluejam however glared over them all with frustration, "You're the boss monkey from Mount Corvo!" he asked her.

Dadan looked up at him and stood tall. "I'm the mountain bandit, Dadan," she corrected proudly, like she couldn't imagine any other life she rather be living. "I don't know why, but I'm registered as their foster parent." She then looked back at Luffy and Ace who were now being protected on all sides by the other bandits. "When someone tries to take my boys' life, I won't stand by and watch."

She sighed before she pointed her axe at Bluejam and proclaimed, "Even if I am not their real parent!"

The Straw Hats couldn't stop staring at her. Just a few months before this event, she couldn't seem to have cared less about the boys, but here she was now risking her life for them.

"When did that change?" Zoro asked.

"Well, they are cute," Robin smiled. "It's hard not to love something so sweet."

"That or she's scared that Garp might kill her for letting them get killed," Zoro muttered.

"Must you ruin such a touching scene?!" Brook yelled at him. "They're here risking their lives for them! Of course they care! It was so touching that it touched my heart! Not that I have one but still!"

"I agree," Nami smiled, filled with new respect for Dadan. "Even if she has a strange way of showing it, she does care about them." She shut her eyes for a brief moment, thinking of her mother's smiling face. "Just because you're not related to someone doesn't make you any less than family."

"I'll just let you go if you back away," Dadan said firmly, holding up her ax, "If you don't, then I'll have to resort to violence!"

"Yeah! Cause now he's the one outnumbered!" Usopp grinned.

"He's not the problem anymore!" Nami yelled as the fire grew hotter around them.

Bluejam didn't react at all as he glared at her, slowly grinning as he held up his sword. "Try it!" he threatened her.

"Alright!" Franky called, grinning from ear to ear. "Show him, Dadan!"

Dadan stepped forward, looking ready for that fight as she held her weapon in one hand. "Oh yeah?" she said as she glared at Bluejam. "Alright then…"

Chopper and Usopp both stood there, smiling eagerly, ready for Bluejam to get what he deserved.

"Run!" Dadan screamed out and just then she turned and ran with the other bandits. Usopp and Chopper both fell forward and did face-plants on the ground.

"What the hell?!" Usopp screamed, popping back up.

"I thought she was gonna fight him!" Chopper yelled out.

"It was obviously a bluff you two," Sanji said, most of the rest of the Straw Hats had sweatdropped at the sight of seeing them run. "But then again, I think it'd be better to just leave. They wasted enough time with this loser anyway." But then he noticed that there was someone who stayed where he was.

"HEY! What're you doing!?" Dogra yelled back. Ace had stood there, not making any attempt to run as he still stood there facing Bluejam, Magra there, pleading for him to run as he pulled desperately on his arm. But Ace pulled himself free as he stepped forward.

"What's he thinking?!" Nami cried.

Zoro's eye narrowed. "He's not leaving."

And just like that Ace held the pipe up, still glaring firmly at the pirate.

"I…" Ace said without a trace of hesitation or fear, "WON'T RUN!"

"Not again!" Usopp cried, freaking out. "He's doing it again! Sabo was right! Ace has a death wish!"

"What's he think he's doing?!" Nami screamed out. "They're home free! Just turn and run! The fire has almost blocked everything off! Even if he does stay and fight him he'll be killed one way or another!"

But Zoro kept his eyes on Ace's—he could see was this was about. He could see that fierce determination in his eyes and why he wasn't going to run.

"Please run Ace-san!" Brook called with Chopper crying as he climbed up onto Brook's shoulder, crying in fear.

"What are you saying Ace!?" Dogra yelled, voicing what they were feeling. "Don't try to fight him! Bluejam is a real villain! He's not a guy that a kid like you can beat!"

But Ace wasn't the only one who wanted to fight. Seeing his brother there had given Luffy his second wind, he was now struggling to get out of the bandit's arms and get back to Ace. "L… let me fight too!"

"NO!" Chopper yelled out, "He's really hurt! He needs medical attention now!"

"No, Luffy!" the bandit yelled, grabbing him in a bear-hug to keep him from running back.

"Someone grab Ace!" Sanji called, but Dadan was now slowly walking back as well, her ax over her shoulder. She turned back to the rest of them and said, "You all, why don't you take Luffy and go on ahead."

"B-Boss," one of the bandits gasped.

"She's…?" Nami whispered.

"I'll take responsibly for bringing Ace home," Dadan said firmly, also with a hint of annoyance, clear that she wasn't happy about this, but her mind was made up.

"She's staying to help Ace!" Franky said, "Yow! What a woman! I'm sorry I called her ugly before!"

"Boss," the bandits muttered, each one of them was looking upset and sick at the thought of leaving her.

"Go!" Dadan ordered fiercely, much like how a pirate captain would give an order to their crew.

"Yes, ma'am!" they yelled as they turned and ran.

Luffy was flung over the bandit's shoulders as he screamed out his brother's name. "ACE!" he called out, still trying to fight to get back to him, but was weak from blood loss. Having no other choice, the Straw Hats all went chasing after him, but as they ran, they couldn't stop themselves from looking back as well—watching the two forms of Ace and Dadan disappear in the blaze.

"Ace!" Luffy cried, tears now falling with the blood, "ACE!"

But the bandits had a tight hold of him as they kept running across the hellish landscape and into the safety of the Middle Forest. But they didn't stop, they kept going anyway until they were as far away from the Gray Terminal as they could get—stopping only when they climbed a large hill. They couldn't see the Terminal thanks to the trees, but the sky was bright red and the black smoke lifted into the air.

They all stood there, each one of them crying out for Dadan and Ace… hoping for a miracle. Luffy cried loudest of them all, his eyes wide in horror as he watched the fire continue to spread and the roar of the flames burning the wind itself.

"AAAAAAACCCCCCCCCEEEEEEEEE!" he bellowed out at the top of his lungs, as if hoping that his brother could hear him and find his way back. The darkness was back and the memory finally faded, and not a moment too soon. Each one of the Straw Hats was staring in front of them, unable to believe what they had just seen.

Usopp was shaking from head to foot. "I can't believe it," he whispered, "How the hell could Luffy stand all this? First Sabo was taken away… and now all this?!"

"This happened years ago," Robin whispered, "To survive, you have to be strong enough to keep going forward. Luffy is stronger in more ways than one."

"I'd say that it's more like he's driven to keep going," Sanji told her, his hand shaking a little as he finally pulled out another cigarette and lit it.

"Yes," Robin said, "But he's strong to do so."

She thought of all that fire, suddenly thinking of how Ohara looked after the Buster Call. She shivered, and wrapped her arms around her as if cold. Even after all these years, she was still haunted by that horrific day—the image of her home being destroyed in much the same way as the Gray Terminal was. She kept her lips firmly together, fighting hard against the wave of grief that welled up inside her, almost escaping.

"I just don't see how it could possibly get worse from here," Usopp croaked as he sank to the ground, suddenly exhausted, "I mean, what else could happen?"

"Almost afraid to find out," Sanji said. "But hell, Ace was something else wasn't he?"

"He was a bigger handful than Luffy was," Zoro sighed, still thinking about that fierce determination in Ace's eyes.

The darkness faded for the next scene and the first thing they saw was the inside of the mountain bandit's hut. Luffy was there, practically crawling along the side of the wall, making his way slowly to the door. He looked exhausted as he hung on, bandages covered his arms that were mending his burns along with the half of his face where the pirate attacked him.

He seemed barely able to stand on his own, breathing almost painfully. But still, he was heading to the door, with every intention to go out and find Ace and Dadan.

"What's he thinking?!" Chopper cried out, looking close to panicking again. "He's in bad shape! He should be in bed!"

But there was only one thing on Luffy's mind.

"Ace…" Luffy said to himself stubbornly, finally making it to the door. Just then, Magra came in, and spotted him out of bed.

"Oi! Luffy!" he called.

But Luffy ignored him as he leaned against the wall, struggling for breath. Though he had only moved a few feet from his bed, the effort was quickly taking its toll.

"Well, at least they treated him this time," Sanji said grimly.

"Easy, easy. Wait, Luffy," Magra said as he headed over to him, the rest of the bandits had come from the back as well to see what was going on. "You haven't recovered—where're you going?"

"Where does he think?" Usopp asked, "Aren't they worried at all about Ace or their boss?"

"I gotta go look for Ace and Dadan," Luffy said, though weak, his voice was still strong. Taking a deep breath, he ran to the door.

"You can't do that!" Magra called just as he threw the door open with such force that he fell through it and hit the ground.

"Ouch," he whimpered softly, curling into a ball where he lay and didn't move again.

"Is he ok?" Nami cried out as Chopper quickly ran over and looked him over.

"It doesn't appear to be anything life-threatening," he said, looking up at them. "He's just exhausted mostly… and he did lose a lot a blood from last night. Magra's right, he shouldn't be moving. Even with Luffy's fast healing, he should still be in bed."

Speaking of Magra, he ran up almost as soon as Luffy hit the ground. "See? That's what I told you," he said, carefully picking him back up and carrying him back to the bed. The rest of the bandits sat there watching as Luffy was tucked in, and tended too with a box of medical supplies next to his head.

"But why don't they go look for them?" Chopper called out. "Don't they care at all?!"

"Why don't you look at their faces?" Robin asked softly.

Blinking in confusion, Chopper did—and he could see at once all the scared and worried looks, each one of them glancing at the door, as if hoping that they would come back and everything would be like it was.

"What else could be happening?" Sanji demanded. "What's going on that they can't leave and look for them?"

"What I don't get is why the bandits are suddenly caring so much," Zoro said, looking over them all. "After all, it's been months since they left this place, but they came out to look for them in that fire and are taking care of him now… not to mention Dadan staying behind with Ace?"

"Like Brook said before," Robin told him, "You can't spend so much time with someone and not worry about them." She glanced up at the bandits again and added, "Though they act like they don't care, they still spent a lot of time with the boys. And when they saw the fire starting, I'm sure that they were worried about them.

Magra sighed as he leaned back. "You're seriously wounded," he informed him. "You have to rest nice and easy."

Chopper nodded, glad that Magra was taking charge of this; while he didn't seem like a doctor, he did seem to know a thing or two about medicine.

"How can anyone sleep after what happened last night?" Franky asked bitterly, thinking of all those people who must've died last night.

As if he heard what he was thinking, Dogra spoke up, trying to reason Luffy into staying and resting, "There are a lot troops in Gray Terminal now taking care of the mess from the fire. And it's not just burnt junk they're taken care of, but survivors too. You're going to get killed if you go there."

"Wait what?!" Usopp screamed out. "You mean they're…?"

"Why am I not surprised?" Zoro demanded. "We should've guessed that they do something like this. After all, wasn't them who planned the fire in the first place?"

"Killing the survivors?" Chopper whispered as the rest just looked on, horrorstruck by those words. The way that Dogra said it… like it was something that happened every week…

But Chopper couldn't take it. He was a doctor for crying out loud! Those people who did survive the fire might've been saved if they were taken to a hospital and given emergency treatment! But instead, they were probably being killed even as they talked about it. He couldn't take it as he cried out at the idea. He could only imagine how those people might've felt. To survive such a devastating fire, probably lying there burnt and pleading for help… to see people coming towards them… probably thinking that they were here to help… only for them to…

"Damn them," Nami whispered, biting her lip at how sick and twisted this was. "This place…? Those nobles are worse than anyone in the Gray Terminal." She was actually shaking at the thought, her fingernails digging into her palms. "They're worse than anything rotten in all that trash. They're… they're rotten to the core! To actually plan all this?! It's one thing to want to get rid of the garbage but the people too?"

"To them, the people who lived there were no better than garbage," Zoro said darkly, his head lowered sadly. "But you're right… there's nothing but empty, soulless bastards."

"To treat life in such a way…" Brook whispered, his hand on his cane—shaking violently so that his bones knocked together. "It makes me sick to my stomach." He was so angry, he didn't bother to try and make a joke about it.

"But…" Luffy began with a whimper, unable to accept the truth. Tears were forming in his eyes, and he didn't even bother to hide them as he sobbed openly, screaming out, "I wanna see Ace!"

At those words, Nami looked away, feeling tears in her own eyes. She knew that Ace must've made it out of this mess alive, but she still couldn't stop them from coming. Franky, Brook, Usopp and Chopper all felt the same way as they began to cry as well. Not even the bandits could be completely emotionless after hearing that and looked away, all of them with pained expressions. "I know Sabo's worried about us, too!" Luffy added as he cried loud and hard.

"I don't want to see anymore," Nami whispered, her hands covering her face. "I wanna go back to the Sunny…"

"We all do," Robin said, tears also pricking at her eyes as she put her hand gently on Nami's shoulder. "But at the same time, it's like we can't bring ourselves to stop watching.

The memory faded out again.

"I know, but I still can't stand to see anymore," Nami said, rubbing her eyes. "This is all private anyway!"

She looked to them all, desperate for some kind of door to open and they could leave. "There has to be a way out of here!"

"I'm on it, Nami-swan!" Sanji declared, and without another word, he went running off into the darkness.

"Sanji!" Usopp and Chopper cried after him as his footsteps disappeared into the void.

"Does that idiot even know where he's going?" Zoro asked before he heard the sounds of running behind them and looked back at once. But he stared at what he saw. It was Sanji, running back towards them. As soon as he saw them all, he skidded to a stop and stared at them.

"What the hell?" he cried out, looking behind him. "But I just…"

"Wow, Sanji," Chopper cried out. "How'd you do that?"

"I didn't do anything!" Sanji said, looking back at them with wide eyes. "I just went running off to look for a door and I'm running back here!"

"What?" Franky cried, and then he went running off in a random direction.

"Not you too, Franky!" Nami cried out behind him, but almost as soon as the sounds of his clanking footsteps faded in front of them, they heard it behind them and they spun around to see Franky running towards them out of the dark.

"EHHHHH!" Usopp screamed out, "What's with this place! How do you run away from something only to end up back where you started from?!"

"I suppose you could if you walked around the world," Robin said softly.

"I guess it's a small world after all," Zoro said, though even he sounded concerned.

"Unless…" Robin added softly, her eyes widening. "Wait… I think I might know! We've experienced this before remember?"

"Huh?" they all asked looking at her.

"Yes!" she declared, "If I'm right then…"

But what she was about to say next was swallowed up as the memory came back again.

This time, it looked to be the late afternoon as they stood in the middle of the bandits hut. They looked around at all the bandits who were all sitting there sulking in depression around the room, each one of them with bleak looks on their faces.

But the Straw Hats were all quickly looking around for one person only. They finally spotted Luffy—and from the looks of things, it had been at least a full day since the last memory. His wounds looked mostly healed, most of his bandages were removed, and he was now curled up in a small ball against the door.

"I'm guessing that Ace-san still hasn't come back yet," Brook asked softly.

"And neither has Dadan," Nami added, now looking deeply concerned.

"You don't think they've been hurt do you?" Chopper asked softly, now cursing himself for not being able to help.

"I doubt they were able to get away unscathed," Sanji told him. But then, the door burst open and one of the bandits came running inside, gasping for breath. "Hey, hey guys!" he cried out, standing in the doorway as everyone looked up at him.

"What is it?" Magra asked, getting up and going to him earnestly.

The man then looked up, tears of relief in his eyes and a smile on his face that could only mean one thing…

"They're returned!" he cried out.

Relief flooded through each of them as Luffy looked up at once, jumping up and running to the door. The only problem was that as soon as they heard that, they all made a beeline for the door as well. After much struggling, pushing, and shoving, it had been Luffy and Magra who got out first. The Straw Hats on the other hand, simply had to walk through the wall as if they were ghosts.

"That never fails to freak me out," Usopp said, shivering. "It's like we've all become ghos—and what the hell?!"

He stopped dead at what he saw… they all did.

Ace was slowly approaching the house, covered in burns, ash, and mostly destroyed clothes. He was missing a shoe as he continued to walk closer, gasping under Dadan's weight, who he was carrying on his back. Dadan looked, if possible, even worse. She was covered in bandages, her hair singed and coughing, she seemed barely aware of what was going on around her. But still… both of them were alive.

"This is bad!" Chopper cried out, looking over their conditions.

"No kidding," Sanji muttered, a little green in the face, "They look half dead on their feet."

The bandits however were all cheering, all of them so happy that they finally came back.

"Ace… Boss…" Magra croaked out, tears of joy in his eyes as they ran forward to help.

"Those wounds look terrible! Hurry! Tend to the boss's wounds!" one of the bandits yelled as they helped her off Ace's back, and led her back to the hut. Ace, still struggling for air, followed after them. As for Luffy, he was just standing there, looking too stunned to speak; he stood there in a kinda daze as they were taken inside and it wasn't until Dadan was being treated did he come back to reality.

"Is he ok?" Usopp asked, looking at Luffy, who never stopped staring at Ace as if he was afraid that he'd disappear.

"He'll be just fine," Robin smiled. "Luffy's just happy that Ace came back. Watch…"

And as if she had said the magic word, Luffy charged Ace from behind, crying out his name and hugging him so tightly they almost wondered if he intended to ever let go.

Ace, who was changing shirts, looked down at him. "Luffy…" he said in a tone they knew all too well, showing that he was annoyed. "Did you think I was dead?"

"He didn't want to," Brook said, "He was just worried."

"I see how this is gonna end," Zoro said, shaking his head, though there was a shadow of a smile on his face.

Luffy let go and croaked out, still crying hard, "But…"

"What are you crying for?" Ace demanded, suddenly angry as he gave Luffy a hard punch to the head. "Don't act like I'm dead when I'm not, you idiot!"

Nami sighed as Luffy cried even harder, rubbing his head where it was starting to swell already. "Not even five minutes and he's already hitting him. What more does he want? They're both back and alive aren't they? Why's he trying to pick a fight? You know it was his fault for refusing to run. I still think they should've knocked him out and made a run for it while they had the chance."

"It's nothing to worry about," Robin smiled. "It just proves that things are back to normal. I suppose that we should just count our blessings that they're dealing well, considered everything that happened."

"And I'm guessing that Ace still doesn't know how to react to someone caring about him," Sanji said, remembering how he had tried to pick a fight with Luffy after they rescued him from Porchemy.

"Now, now, let him be," Magra scolded Ace lightly, a small smile on his own face. "Luffy is just happy."

"He doesn't look like it to me," Chopper said, watching.

"Now," Sanji said, breathing out smoke. "We all have our ways of showing how we care." He then turned to Nami and Robin and cried out, hearts flashing in his eyes, "My loves! I hope you always know how much I care for you both! I'll gladly go to the ends of the earth for both of you! No matter how hard or long the journey will be, I'll be there to protect you the whole way!"

Nami rolled her eyes as Robin smiled politely. Now that the danger was over and Ace and Dadan were back, everything seemed to be looking brighter.

Ace glared at Magra for a second before he looked down at Luffy, as if wondering just what he was supposed to do now. Finally, he ruffled Luffy's hair in an awkward, but oddly tender way. At his touch, Luffy ran back to him and hugged him tightly, as he cried harder than ever.

Ace was startled by this, but didn't say anything as Luffy clung on strongly.

"That's just too sweet," Robin said, once again, feeling jealous of the bonds that brothers had.

"Yeah," Usopp agreed, also smiling again. "So sweet I think I'm getting a cavity just looking. I'm glad that things worked out."

Once Luffy had calmed down enough to stop crying, and let go of Ace, Dadan was properly treated and they were all surrounding her bed.

"How bad is she, Chopper?" Sanji asked, not liking to see any woman in pain.

Chopper looked over them at the wounds that Magra was treating. "She was seriously burned," he informed him. "And from the look of it, she inhaled a lot of the smoke. But I think she has a good chance at pulling through without any long-lasting effects if she lets herself rest."

Nami sighed in relief. "That's good to hear. I was worried."

"Ace… about the night of the fire…" one of the bandits said as they finished bandaging Dadan's hands up, "After we took Luffy and left… what happened to you and the Boss when you stayed behind?"

"That's what I wanna know," Zoro said interestedly.

Ace sighed, and explained the whole thing. "After you left, we stayed and fought Bluejam," he stated simply. And then he went on to explain how they were able to defeat him, but when they did, they were surrounded by fire. He told them all how it was Dadan who went running through the fire to get them out, how they hid in the Middle Forest near the river as Ace struggled to keep Dadan alive. He told them about how he had been forced to steal food and medicine from High Town and was able to stabilize her—all the while, hiding from the soldiers who were still looking for survivors.

"What a brave woman!" Franky cried out. "I take back everything I said about her! What a lady!"

"Looks like she does have a kind side to her after all," Nami smiled, glad to see that she'd been wrong about her.

"Now, now," Magra said with that same kind look on his face, looking down at his boss, "so that's what happened? Well, I'm glad that you both made it out alive."

"I think we all agree there," Usopp whispered, feeling much more light-hearted than he had been for such a long time.

"I'm sorry I made you worry," Dadan said softly.

"Did she just apologize?" Zoro asked in surprise.

"Is it really that hard to imagine that she cares about the bandits?" Brook asked, though it was hard to tell, the bandits were a family… much like how the Straw Hat Pirates were. Was it truly hard to believe that they did for one another?

Ace looked ahead, lost in thought as he muttered to himself, "I never thought that something like this could happen to the Gray Terminal… I'm sure Sabo's worried."

"He must know by now about the fire," Sanji said, his own eyes narrowing. "No one could've missed that. And he would be worried sick over wondering if his brothers being hurt or not."

As Ace continued to talk with the others, Luffy decided to go outside with the white dog that acted as the mountain bandit's mascot, Pochi.

"Wow," Usopp said, looking up at the sky, "I didn't realize just how much time had passed, it's almost night."

Luffy looked up at the sky as well with a melancholy face and asked Pochi, "I wonder what Sabo's up to." But he down looked at him with a small smile, "Still, I'm glad Ace came back and Dadan's getting better."

Pochi barked in agreement as Brook said, "I too am glad. It was all so frightening, I felt as if my heart would stop! Ah! Not that I have a heart to stop! Yohohoho!"

"Well, at least we know that Brook's feeling better," Sanji chuckled.

As Luffy wandered around the hut, he found two large beetles, which caused Nami and Sanji to stand far back from. But Luffy's eyes began to glow at the sight of them and brought them both to a small barrel where he put them there, trying to get them to fight each other.

"Isn't that cute?" Robin smiled.

"Boy, he's acting just like he did when we were at Jaya," Nami sighed, but even she was having a hard time not to beam.

"An Atlas and a Hercules beetle!" Chopper proclaimed proud that he could recognize them, "Luffy talked all about them when we were looking for that South Bird."

"There's just something about little boys that just love playing with bugs," Nami sighed.

"Hey, be nice," Franky said grinning.

"Alright, who's going to win?" Luffy asked cheerfully, poking them both with a stick.

"I see that he's recovering from the fire quickly," Brook said happily. "That's good to see."

"He's resilient," Sanji reminded him. "He just bounces back no matter what happens."

"You think he'd be a little more upset to what happened though," Usopp said softly.

"Ace and Dadan came back," Zoro answered, watching the happy shine in the boy's eyes. "That's enough for him for now."

As Luffy continued to play around with the beetles, they heard rustling coming from the trees, and that was when Dogra came out from the forest. He was pale and shaking—obviously tired from his long search for Ace and Dadan.

Luffy heard him, and when he spotted him coming, he got up and cried out, "Dogra!" waving the stick around happily. "You went looking for Ace and Dadan, right? They've both came home!"

Dogra looked a little relieved, but the nervous, pale look on his face didn't fade at that. "R-Really?" he stuttered, for some reason not really able to look at Luffy. "They have? That's great…"

"What's his problem?" Franky asked annoyed, "You think he'd be happy to hear that they're alright. That's why he went out to look for him right?"

Zoro narrowed his eye, watching Dogra smile a little too forcibly at Luffy, a little too cheerful, "Something happened."

"Yes, and if he was out at the Gray Terminal, there's a chance that he saw the soldiers there and…?" Robin offered before she trailed off. But no one needed or wanted her to finish that line. Luffy, not noticing Dogra's behavior, lead him inside the house, happily telling everyone else that Dogra had come home.

It was a relief to see that Dadan was already sitting up, looking pale, but much better as Magra poured some Sake for her.

"This is all the medicine I need," she told him firmly as she drank it down, "When life gives you lemons, buy more Sake if you ask me."

"Words to live by," Zoro smirked, now dying for a hard drink himself.

"Oh, Dogra!" Magra said, smiling when his friend walked in, but it soon faded when he saw the shocked look on Dogra's face. "What is it?" he asked.

"Yeah, you look like you just saw a ghost," another bandit told him.

Luffy finally noticed and asked, "Dogra?"

Dogra didn't say a word as he stood there in front of them all, it was then that Zoro noticed that his hands were shaking, and his face was working hard as if trying to find the words to describe what happened.

"Dogra?" Dadan said to him loudly, helping herself to another swig of drink, "What is it?"

Dogra was shaking all over now, but he finally spoke, his hands curled into tight fists at his sides, "I went into High Town earlier. I heard that there was some kind of ceremony going on. I snuck in and I overheard some of the guards talking about it." He was gritting his teeth together, his eyes suddenly shadowed over so that they couldn't see the emotion in them. "The King and the nobles _were_ the ones behind the fire the other night. The Nobles planned it all… they spread the rumor to Edge Town that it was Bluejam who had caused it…"

"What kinda king would do this?" Brook demanded in outrage.

"Those lousy, pieces of shit," Sanji growled.

"They really are all real monsters," Nami croaked out miserably.

"But they call us monsters," Chopper reminded her, suddenly fretfully.

"There are two kinds of monsters," Sanji said looking down at him. "The strong and powerful kind… and the ones who do horrible things like this. We've all done a lot of—ah… questionable things in the past that we aren't proud of, but we never hurt people like this."

"So the people in Edge Town didn't know anything about it?" one of the bandits asked.

"They were in danger too last night," Dogra explained, "If the fire was any higher, the wind could've blown the flames inside the wall. No, they were all as surprised by it as the rest of us."

"But why?" Dadan asked the million beri question. "The nobles never bothered with the Gray Terminal before, why go through all this now?"

"What was so special about this stupid ceremony?" Ace asked angrily.

Dogra was now shaking, "They were welcoming the Celestial Dragons at port."

At that name, the Straw Hats eyes all widened and the air seemed to catch in their chests. Suddenly it all made complete sense. They all understood everything now.

"The… the Celestial Dragons?" Nami repeated, oddly numb.

"You mean the same ones that we saw at Sabaody?" Chopper cried out, "The ones that tried to take Camie from us?!"

"So _that's_ it," Robin said softly, her eyes narrowing. "The nobles wanted to impress them so they decided to get rid of everything—undesirable in their kingdom. So rather than spend so much time and money cleaning up the mess they decided to burn it all as a cheap and quick escape."

"You mean they did all this for the world nobles?!" Nami cried out, "They killed everyone in the Gray Terminal just for something like this?"

"Why those…" Sanji growled. "Just when I thought that they couldn't be any more rotten. This whole kingdom's rotten to the core!"

"But why would they come here?" Usopp demanded, "Why would they come all the way to a kingdom this far out in the East Blue?"

"Why would they be here?" Magra asked, thankfully asking Usopp's question.

"I don't know," Dogra went on with a shake of his head, "Apparently they were here to inspect the kingdom."

"Inspect?" Dadan asked, thinking something over. "Oh, right…" she said, "I remember reading about something-or-other about an inspection of Goa."

"Who are these guys anyway?" Ace asked grumpily. "What makes them so special?"

"Nothing at all," Franky shouted out, "They just _think_ they're special."

"Think of them as like nobles of the World Government," one of the other bandits told him. "You think the guys here in Goa are rich with a lot of influence? Well, they're nothing compared to the Celestial Dragons. They have influence everywhere in the world! Not just on this island."

"Dogra?" Luffy asked innocently, not understanding what was going on. "What's wrong?"

Dogra was shaking worse than ever.

"Seriously, what's with him?" Franky asked, folding his massive arms, "You think that he saw someone die or something."

"I don't know how to say it…" Dogra said, his voice now trembling, "I was there at port watching the Celestial Dragon's ship coming in… but as they got near, a small fishing boat set out from out of nowhere!"

"A fishing boat?" Dadan repeated in surprise, "What's that got to do with anything."

"The Celestial Dragon's ship fired on it and killed the person on board. It was a child…" Dogra cried out, shaking his head hard and he finally cried out, "It was Sabo! It was him!"

The Straw Hat's felt as if the world was closing in around them making it hard to breathe… each one of them felt as if they had just been punched in the gut as Dogra finally screamed out, "SABO'S DEAD!"

No one spoke, they were all petrified by what they learned.

"This can't be," Brook whispered, now falling back, unable to believe what he just heard.

"Sabo… he's…?" Usopp could bring himself to say it, shaking from head to foot.

"Gone," Robin whispered, her eyes wide as she was forced to accept everything that happened.

Chopper was crying as he thought about the boy that he had grown to like so much. Sure, he never met Sabo, but he had learned a lot about him through these memories and he couldn't help but feel as if he lost a dear friend. Nami's hands were over her mouth as she stared at Luffy's and Ace's face. They looked as if they had just had their hearts ripped right out.

Sanji actually fell to his knees. "Damn them… Damn them… DAMN THOSE BASTARDS TO HELL!"

"Sabo is…" Ace whispered in disbelief as he stared at Dogra, not believing it. Luffy and the bandits were each staring at Dogra with identical expressions of shock. They couldn't believe it either.

"You liar!" Ace screamed out as he charged ahead. Ace's eyes suddenly burned with rage and he tacked Dogra to the floor. "Don't even joke about that!"

He held his fist up, looking ready to strike until Magra called out, "Don't do it, Ace!"

"He's just delivering the message," Zoro said enigmatically, "There's no point in taking his anger out on him. He's not the one that should pay."

"It's not a lie, nor a joke," Dogra gasped out. "It was so sudden, I barely realized that it had happened. I doubted my own eyes! I wondered if it was a dream or an illusion!"

"A common response if it's so sudden," Robin whispered, these last few memories kept bringing back more and more of her own memories of Ohara… how it had all happened so quickly that she couldn't believe her own eyes. It was like she was in a sort living nightmare. Even now, she could almost swear that it had all been a bad dream.

"Shut up!" Ace screamed out, now shaking Dogra, looking like he was going to seriously hurt Dogra if he kept talking. "Sabo went back to his noble born parents! There's no way he would sail out to sea!"

"That's right! Sabo went home!" Luffy yelled out in agreement, refusing to believe that Sabo was dead.

"They're in denial," Brook whispered.

"Of course," Robin told them, her hair hiding her own face, "Sabo was alive and just fine a few days ago. They decided to leave him alone and wait for him to come back… but now he can't ever do that. And now the last memory they have of him is of him being taken back to the place that he was so desperate to escape from. On top of everything that happened in the last few days… it's too much for them to accept. Especially when they thought that they were safe…"

"Outlaws like us understand how he must have felt!" Dogra yelled, "We all have places we really don't want to go back to!"

With a great effort, he was able to push Ace off him. "Do you really think he would go out to sea if he were actually happy?" he bawled him, finally looking up with tears now streaming down his face as he cried out, "Do you really think he would fly a pirate flag and set out on his own!?"

Ace froze where he was, as if those words had struck him dumb. Like a curse, they fell over everyone in that room so that no one could move. The wind blowing through the window, ruffling the curtains was the only noise that they had as they all stood there as the rest of the world stopped.

"No one could do that on their own unless they were truly miserable," Zoro whispered.

"Why?" Usopp whispered, tears now in his eyes. "WHY WOULD HE DO THAT? WHAT WAS HE THINKING DOING SOMETHING SO STUPID?!"

Luffy stepped forward, almost staggering, his expression of shock now turned to pain. "Sabo…" he croaked out, tears forming in his eyes and now quickly falling from his face, "HE REALLY WASN'T HAPPY!" he screamed out.

At his words, the bandits all bore similar expressions of grief and sorrow, but Ace was on his knees, twisting his hair around so violently that it looked like he was trying to pull it out. "Why…?" he cried out, "Why didn't we try to break him out of there!?"

When his eyes opened, Zoro saw at once that something snapped inside of him.

"He's going to do something stupid," he said. And knowing Ace, he was going to charge in head first.

Filling up with a rage, Ace grabbed hold of Dogra again. "Where is the person who killed Sabo!? I'm gonna murder them!"

"EHHHH?" Usopp cried, his eyes now red and puffy. "He's gonna kill himself! Remember what happened when Luffy attacked that one at the auction house?" He stopped at that, suddenly realizing that when Luffy attacked that Celestial Dragon that day, there was much more to the story than he had ever thought. When he did punch that guy, was he thinking about Sabo at the time? Was it also possible that Luffy was taking revenge for when his brother was killed?

"T-the Celestial Dragon!? There's no way you can do…" Dogra cried out, but Ace was passed listening. Going for his staff, he went running to door, screaming out that he was going to avenge Sabo's death.

"Someone stop him!" Nami cried out, suddenly realizing how close Ace had come to getting killed. But this certainly proved to her once and for all that Ace truly was Luffy's older brother. They were both fearless and protective of those they love. The fact that they both were willing to attack a Celestial Dragon and risk the idea of an admiral was enough. Though now that she thought of it, Ace probably had no idea how dangerous it was to go after the World Nobles.

Thankfully, her plea was answered. Dadan was on her feet again, and tackled Ace—slamming his head into the floor so hard that it was smash into pieces. "But she didn't have to do it like that," she added, wincing in pain.

"Drop it, you damn brat!" Dadan yelled out as Ace fought to get up.

"Get off me!" Ace shouted out as he swung around to glare at her. "Don't get in my way!" he cried out at the blood that was falling from a gash from one of the boards. Luffy and the others only stood there, staring in alarm at what was happening, unsure as to what to say or do.

But Dadan had only gotten started. "You keep acting tough, even though you don't have any real strength!" she shrieked out, shoving his head down even deeper into the floor. "What the hell do you think you can do now!?" she demanded. "You'll just end up dead! You will die and everyone will forget about you by tomorrow! That's all you amount to right now!" She took several deep breaths as she glared at him, his eyes wide with desperation. "It was this kingdom that killed Sabo! It was the world itself! What can you do!?"

"Nothing," Franky whispered, thinking of how helpless he Tom was been taken away. "That's what he hates! The idea that he can't do anything to avenge his own brother's death is more than he can stand."

"But you know that's not completely true," Robin said softly, her eyes going to the still crying Luffy. "There's one person who'll always remember him."

"Your father's death brought about a new era!" Dadan yelled, holding him up and shaking him hard. "Once you have become a man of that caliber, then you're free to live or die as you like!"

Ace was still struggling, fighting to get free. And they could see that he knew that Dadan spoke the truth, but to admit to it would be like admitting that he couldn't do anything.

"I can't imagine how hard it would be for Ace-san to except that," Brook whispered.

"But it's true," Sanji responded bitterly, "After all… weaklings can't protect anything. You don't get to pick how you want to die."

Seeing that he wasn't going to calm down anytime soon, Dadan yelled to the other bandits as she threw Ace at them, "Go tie this moron up!"

Shaken, the bandits handled Ace—carrying him outside to the nearest tree to tie him up—the whole time he fought back, cursing at them all, but too tired from his ordeal to do much. The whole time, Luffy was there crying, tears quickly forming a flood as he screamed out his lost brother's name. Ace screaming outside at Luffy to shut up, at how men weren't supposed to cry.

But no matter how much he yelled, Luffy kept crying, and the cries of pain and lost filled their ears as the darkness came back. Nami had been unable to hold back her own tears as she thought about how that little boy had been so brutally killed for no good reason.

"So that's why we never heard about him," Zoro said quietly, feeling oddly numb from the whole thing.

"Don't you realize what this means?" Usopp cried out, running his nose along his arm. "Luffy lost _both_ of his brothers! First Sabo, and then what happened to Ace…?"

"Poor Luffy," Chopper whispered as he bawled too. "It's not fair! How could this happen?"

"The government is never fair," Franky hissed out, blowing his nose as he fought the urge to break something big and heavy. "They don't care how many innocent lives they kill so long as they get what they want! This is what the government really is like! They go on and on about how they uphold justice while they're the ones behind all the suffering in the world! What makes those nobles so damn special?"

"But why would they kill him?" Nami cried, going to Robin to bury her face in her friend's shoulder. "Sabo didn't do anything?!"

"Most likely the Celestial Dragons were offended by him ruining their entrance and decided to take care of him," Robin whispered.

Tears were also falling from Brook's empty sockets as he and Zoro kept their heads down, silently paying their respects to Luffy and Ace's brother.

"Man, and I thought that Ace dying was bad enough," Usopp said, sniffling, "But then there was all this mess with Sabo! How was Luffy able to deal all this on his own?"

"He wasn't alone," Robin whispered to him. Usopp looked up at her to see her empty eyes—she looked as if her thoughts were a million miles away right now. "It was different with Sabo than it was with Ace," she told him. "Luffy never _saw_ Sabo die. He only ever heard about it. And even then, he still had Ace there to help him through it. But Ace died right in front of him and, in a way, he was all alone after that."

She glanced at them all and knew they were all wondering the same thing. Just what happened in that warzone? None of them new the whole story to how Ace died, or exactly what Luffy had to go through that day… but they all noticed it. Though Luffy had grown a hundred times stronger than ever before, and he still went on through life with a bright smile and simple attitude… but he wasn't the same person as he was before they were separated by Kuma.

It was almost as if he was carrying around a heavy burden on his shoulders… as if he was struggling underneath a great weight.

The darkness disappeared, and now they were all standing out on the cliff that overlooked the sea. They knew where they were at once—it was the same place where the three brothers had once talked about their dreams shortly toasting their brotherhood. That memory seemed like a lifetime ago…

For a moment, they didn't see Luffy, but soon spotted him lying on his stomach on the soft grass, but his hat was covering his face as he gazed out at the sea.

"Luffy," Usopp said softly as he carefully approached him, wanting to comfort him, but instead, his hand went right through. He never felt more useless in his life. How could he be sitting here watching this while his captain was suffering? Even if it was years ago, he felt sick with himself for not being able to do more here.

"Ace-san…" Brook said softly, and they glanced up in time to see Ace walking towards them. His face was grim and cold… yet much calmer than he had been before. His burns from the fire seemed to have healed, as well as the cut on his forehead; meaning that it had to have been a couple days since they got the miserable news about Sabo.

He didn't seem surprised at all to see Luffy there as he slowly approached, not saying a word, but making enough noise that Luffy could hear him. When he was close enough, he made a fist and blew on it before he gave Luffy a quick bonk on the head. "How long are you gonna mop around like this?" he demanded.

"Was that really necessary, Ace?" Usopp asked him sadly.

"Yes, we all need our time to grieve," Brook whispered softly. But Luffy didn't complain, he merely gripped the rim of his hat tightly, refusing to look at anything.

Ace stood there for a minute, just gazing out at the sea before he began to speak. What he said next, was in an indifferent tone, as if he couldn't care less about it, "All the treasure we hid in the Middle Forest is gone now."

He shrugged grimly as he folded his arms, "Maybe it was stolen by the survivors of Bluejam's crew, or maybe the military found it… I don't know where it is now."

"That doesn't matter anymore anyway," Nami said softly, her mother's smiling face coming to mind once again. "Even with all the treasure in the world, you can't bring back someone you love."

Apparently Ace agreed.

"But that pile of loot doesn't matter anymore," he said to Luffy, "Sabo and I were gonna use it. It was our _Pirate Fund_. But in the end, Sabo didn't use it. So I'm not gonna bother with it either. Not much point in gathering treasure if we can't look after it."

"He's handling it all well," Brook said kindly.

"On the outside," Robin said sadly, "But I think on the inside he's still in a lot of pain. After all, Sabo was his best friend before he became his brother."

"A-Ace?" Luffy asked, his voice thick with emotion. "I… I want… I want to become stronger!"

He sniffed, and they could tell that he was fighting tears, "Stronger and stronger… stronger and stronger… stronger and stronger…" This went on for some time as Luffy continued to repeat the word 'stronger' putting much emphasis on how strong he wanted to be. Even while stating this with much vigor, he was still crying. "Stronger and stronger… and even stronger than that! And then, I'll be able to protect anything! I won't have to lose anyone ever again!"

The Straw Hats all kept their eyes firmly on the little boy. They all knew full well that he would, indeed, become stronger than anyone could imagine. Now here, it all made complete sense.

"So that's why he's so protective of us," Nami whispered.

"I get it," Franky hissed, his robotic hands curling up in tight fists. "It was never just about becoming Pirate King."

"He can understand the pain of losing someone," Brook whispered, "He went through it and he never wanted to go through it again."

Zoro didn't say anything, but he now felt like he understood Luffy so much better than ever before. He knew that same feeling after all. After Kunia died, he too wanted to become stronger than she ever was. Strong enough so that his name could reach up to the heavens where she could hear him. Letting her know that he carried on her dream and that he hadn't forgotten her. Luffy had been doing that exact same thing all this time… he was carrying on his brothers will. But he felt sick with himself for finding out this way… if Luffy had ever wanted to talk about his past, he would've mentioned it. Watching all this suddenly felt like a betrayal of the deepest decree and he was having trouble breathing.

"Please…" Luffy suddenly begged out. "Ace… don't die too!"

They all caught their breath.

"Luffy…" Nami cried in hardly more of a whisper.

"Don't be ridiculous!" Ace yelled, punching him in the head again. "You should be more worried about yourself than me! You're way weaker than I am!" he stood up straight and declared, "Listen up, and remember this, Luffy! I WON'T DIE!"

"Too bad that he couldn't hold that promise…" Sanji muttered bleakly.

"No one can forever," Zoro said quietly.

"He was promising that he wouldn't leave Luffy alone," Robin whispered as Chopper burst out in tears at that, "That he would always be there for him when he needed him."

"Oh, man," Franky called, covering his face with the hanky. "I'm all torn up inside! I knew that they were close, but I never knew how much!"

Luffy slowly sat up as Ace went on, "Sabo made that request too. I promise, I will not die! There's no way I'd die and leave behind a weakling of a brother like you."

"Well, that's mean," Usopp cried out.

"Ace still isn't good with being gentle," Robin said softly. "He's dealing with it as best as he can."

"I'm not that smart," Ace went on, still staring out at the bright blue sea. "So I don't know what it was that killed Sabo… but whatever it was, it was the opposite of freedom! Sabo died without ever gaining his freedom."

"But what's the opposite of freedom?" Chopper asked.

"The world," Robin answered grimly. "It's always been the world."

"But the two of us, who shared a toast with Sabo, are still alive!" Ace finished. He never once took his eyes off the sea, and his resolve appeared in his eyes. A light breeze picked up and he breathed it in, as if Sabo was there telling them this. "So, listen up, Luffy! We will definitely live life without regrets!"

"So that's it…" Sanji said, breathing hard on the cigarette. "That's why Luffy can act selfish when he wants to. The last thing he wants is to leave this world with… with regret. He wants to live to the fullest."

Ace looked down at Luffy and told him, "Sabo once said to me that in this country, Noblemen only become true nobles when they turn eighteen. That's why he had planned to leave when he turned seventeen! So that's what we're going to do!"

Luffy nodded firmly as they both looked out at the sea together. "Someday, we will set out to sea and live life the way we want to! With more freedom than anyone else!"

"Freedom…" Nami whispered to herself almost in a dream-like state. Just what _was_ freedom in this world of prisons and boundaries? Her eyes widening as she remembered what Luffy once said to Rayleigh.

"_I don't wanna conquer anything! It's just that the person with the most freedom on the seas is The King of the Pirates!"_

She smiled, closing her watery eyes, now fully understanding.

Luffy merely nodded with his brother. It was really all they could do. Sabo may be gone, but the two of them were still alive. The three of them once shared the same dream, and if Sabo couldn't fulfill his, then they were willing to stand up and do it for him.

"I'm sure that we'll make a lot of people are enemies…" Ace said, "Gramps will become our enemy, too. We'll be risking our lives! We'll cast off when we turn seventeen!"

The two remaining brothers looked out at the two seagulls flying over the waves. "WE WILL BECOME PIRATES!" Ace declared to the heavens, as if hoping that Sabo could hear him.

"RIGHT!" Luffy called out firmly. "And one day I will become the King of the Pirates!"

Ace merely smirked. "So long as you don't regret anything that you do from here on out that's all that matters. From this moment on… we live how we want to! For Sabo's sake if nothing else!"

Franky cried harder than ever, feeling as if his heart was being torn out.

"I gotta admire their dedication," Sanji said.

"It's incredible," Usopp whispered. "Even after all these years, they held true to their promise. They never once stopped!"

As they sat there, Ace reached down the front of his shirt and pulled out a wrinkled piece of paper.

"What's that?" Luffy asked as Ace carefully unfolded it and stared at it.

"A letter…" he said softly, "From Sabo."

Luffy and the rest of the Straw Hats gasped out. "But how?" Luffy called loudly, "Sabo's…"

"Sabo sent it before he set out to sea," Ace explained, "When he knew that he was going to take his chance at freedom. I get now why he didn't come back. He couldn't come back to us without worrying about us getting killed."

He held it out to him. "You wanna read it?" he asked.

Luffy looked at it before he shook his head. "I don't need to," he said firmly. "Sabo was our brother and we're gonna become pirates and live out his dream! That's all I need to know!"

Ace smirked. "I knew you'd say that. Sabo was just writing to tell me to keep you safe."

But Robin was curious as she leaned over Ace's shoulder to look at it and read it out for them as Ace gazed long and hard at the paper, as if trying to memorize the words.

"_Ace and Luffy_," she read out to her crew._ "I hope you weren't hurt in the fire. I'm worried, but I have faith in you. I'm sorry about this, but by the time you get this letter, I will be out at sea. A lot has happened, and I've decided to set sail ahead of you."_

Franky's lower lip was quivering as Chopper kept rubbing his swollen eyes and Usopp sat on the ground, staring at his feet, unable to say anything. The rest of them merely stood there and listened to Sabo's final words to his brothers.

"_My destination… won't be this kingdom, but elsewhere_," Robin continued on, feeling tears burning her own eyes as she read the sincerity in each word. Sabo truly wrote these words from this heart_. There, I'll get stronger… I'll become a pirate. Let's become pirates with more freedom than anyone else, and then meet up again someday. The three of us. Somewhere out on the wide, free ocean… I'm sure that someday, we'll meet!"_

Now Sanji and Nami had joined in on the crying as Brook kept his boney hands over his ribcage, where his heart would be normally. It was cruel to think that the brothers were never to meet again.

_Oh, and Ace, I wonder who's the older brother between the two of us. Two eldest sons, and one younger brother. It might be strange, but this bond between us is my greatest treasure._

"They do say that not all treasure is silver and gold," Sanji said softly, looking down at his hands, his own treasure. For most pirates, they consider things like gold to be the only kind of treasure. However, the true treasures were the ones that you held to your heart. So long as it is something that you were willing to fight for, it was a treasure.

"_Luffy might still be a weakling and a crybaby, but he's still our little brother," _Robin finished up,_ "So take good care of him for me!"_

She stood up slowly, as Ace sighed and forced a smile.

"It's gonna be ok," Ace said to Luffy softly as he held out the paper and let the wind carry it away from him. They all watched the letter drift on the wind, over the ocean, fluttering almost like the wings of a bird as it continued onwards to the horizon. "You're right. We don't need a letter to know what Sabo wanted… Sabo just set sail ahead of us that's all. We'll leave when we become stronger! Stronger than anyone!"

***Luffy***

"So _that's_ what's going on," Luffy said thoughtfully after he listened to Ace's explanation to what where he was and why he was here.

"You didn't understand a word I just said did you?" Ace asked him with a knowing smile.

"Nope," Luffy answered truthfully, actually laughing a little as he rubbed the back of his head, "But it sounds like I'm not dead."

"Well, you attained more than I thought you would," Ace said, laughing alongside him. "You really are the same as always… little brother."

At the word 'brother' Luffy stopped laughing and gazed long and hard at Ace. Ace looked a little surprise by Luffy's sudden change in attitude and asked what was wrong.

"Nothing," Luffy said, before he launched himself at Ace, hugging him as tightly as he did when Ace had come back to the house after the fire. He had thought that he'd see him again both times… but he was proven wrong.

He didn't care if this was only temporary or not. Ace felt so real… so solid against him. For the last two years he often dreamed what it would've felt like to see his big brother again. To talk to him, to touch him… even to feel Ace punch him… he had been willing to trade all the treasure from the One Piece just to see Ace one more time. To just feel safe again… "I'm just so happy I got to see you again!"

Ace must have understood, because he smiled gently, ruffling Luffy's hair as he hugged him back tightly. His arms were clasped around Luffy, securing him to his chest, as Luffy started sobbing in earnest.

"There were just so many things I had wanted to tell you!" Luffy's voice grew louder and throatier with each word, not ashamed at the flood of tears that were falling thick and fast. "I can't tell you what it felt like to just sit there and watch you die."

"It wasn't your fault, Luffy," Ace sighed heavily, and Luffy felt Ace's rib cage rise and fall with the air flowing through his lungs, as though he were organic and alive. "I wasn't thinking about it. I just acted… but I thought I told you that I had no regrets about how I lived my life."

"I know but…" Luffy croaked out, "But that moment's been haunting me all this time. Even after everything that's happened, it's like a part of me just can't move on from that!"

Ace made a soft, soothing sound, patting Luffy on the back as he continued to hold him tightly, letting the tears drench his skin.

"I was so angry at you," Luffy told him as his voice hitched, "For a long time. You promised me that you wouldn't die! I'm so sorry!"

He suddenly felt the world tip slightly, first one way, then the other a couple of inches up and then down, like a see-saw. He realized that this was because Ace was gently rocking him.

"I didn't think I'd ever see you again!" Luffy went on, "I wanted to see you so much! There's so much I want to tell you!"

Ace grinned, "Sabo will be glad to hear that."

Luffy's eyes snapped open and he pulled back to stare at him. "Sabo…?" he croaked out. "He's…?"

"Here?" Ace smiled, bumping his knuckles against his brother's forehead again. "Duh. Want to see him?"

**(I hope you all enjoyed this long chapter, it was a pain to write. We covered a lot of ground here. And I know that I said here that it had been a couple days since Ace and Dadan came back, but honestly we don't know how long they've been missing. In the Anime, Sabo's father mentions that the ceremony would take place **_**day after tomorrow**_**, and it wasn't until then did Ace and Dadan come back, so I'm guessing it's been at least a full day, maybe two. And now, just when the Straw Hats hear the horrible truth about Sabo, Luffy has a chance to meet with his brother again. I'm still trying to decide if I should still have him as a child or as an adult version of him. And for those of you who will most likely be asking, yes it's the real Ace that he's speaking too—or rather Ace's spirit. And yes, it will be the real Sabo that we're going to see. For those of you who are going to ask—I really do like Sabo, but we've got to face the facts here. I'm afraid that Oda clearly said in ****One Piece Green**** that he'd been killed in the attack. ****So unless he states otherwise, I have to go along with it, so please don't try and tell me about the sake cups that were at Ace's grave. I'm afraid that unless it comes out that he's been with the revolutionaries all this time, then I have to believe that he's dead****.)**


	11. Bond of Brothers

**Chapter 11: Bond of Brothers**

The memory faded away once again and the Straw Hats were all staring ahead of them at the darkness, all of them suddenly feeling sick with themselves for watching something so private. First with Sabo's death and now this tearful vow the two brothers made to each other… they wished that they could forget all about it and pretend not to have seen anything… but it was impossible.

The one in the worst shape was probably Usopp.

He was sitting on the ground, his hands now rummaging through his bag, trying to find something to distract him, but he couldn't stop his mind from thinking about it. Luffy had wanted to become the King of the Pirates ever since he promised Shanks, this he knew, but it was really Sabo's death did his captain become determined to really fulfill it. Ace and Luffy had a vow that they would one day become free, and now Luffy was the only one left who still carried that vow. Usopp just couldn't begin to imagine how heavy a burden that must be like.

He and Luffy may not have spoken about it, but they both dreamt of meeting up with Shanks's crew someday—Luffy for Shanks, and himself for his father. More than anything else, when Usopp does finally meet his father, he wanted to stand in front of him as a brave warrior and a great pirate like he was…

He supposed, his biggest ambition was for his father to be proud of him. Before he met Luffy, Zoro and Nami, he didn't know what he wanted out of his life, but after they helped him to protect his home village, he was inspired to go out to sea and become a pirate… When Luffy asked him along, it meant more to him than anything—he wanted to pinch himself to make sure it wasn't a dream. Who would've thought that going with him would change him like this? He wouldn't be where he was right now if it wasn't for that one spur of the moment decision.

But seeing Luffy and Ace make this vow with such conviction in their voices when they had been just small children made him feel ashamed.

That one moment was more than anything he was.

After his mother died, he stayed where he was and only _played_ pirate with the village children. Could he have become that strong if he started working at it from them? Zoro and Sanji were proof of that… they didn't have Devil Fruit abilities, and he knew that even if Luffy never ate the Gum Gum fruit, he'd still be horribly strong. All three of them are monsters after all. But, as for himself, he just kept running through the village day after day shouting out lies.

He stared long and hard at the arsenal and gadgets in his bag. All these things, these… weapons that he carried with him, none of them made him feel any braver. How did Luffy do it? How is it that Luffy always managed to stay so happy about everything!? Why wasn't he ever afraid after everything that's happen to them? He felt his face cringe and he gritted his teeth together in a poor attempt to hold back the tears.

"How does he do it?" he asked out loud, forgetting that the rest of his crew was there.

"Do what?" Nami asked him confused.

"How does he keep going forward with everything that's happened to him?" he asked, hiding his face from them. "If it were me, I'd have given up a long time ago. But he keeps going for the sake of his brothers doesn't he?"

"I think that's just what makes him strong," Sanji said, pulling his cigarette out grimly, "Because he owes it to them to live. If he were to die before he fulfilled that vow, he'd never be able to rest in peace."

"For him, dying would be like spitting in their faces, and making a mockery of their sacrifices," Zoro said softly.

"But…" Usopp said, looking up at him.

"He just believes in the future," Robin said softly, "Even if it's like a castle of sand… he just keeps going because he knows he has to."

Franky burst out crying, "Man, that pulls at the heartstrings! What's the deal with you guys doing this to me? I think I feel a song coming up…"

"I'm already ahead of you Franky-san," Brook cried, strumming the guitar and began to sing out, "_Every time the rain no longer falls, and I see the sky… I think back to when I was a child… who could only cry…_"

"Robin?" Zoro interrupted them, "Didn't you say before that you had an idea where we were?"

"How could you interrupt, Zoro-san?" Brook cried as Zoro ignored him as he and the rest of the crew looked to Robin.

"Yeah, you did say that we've been in a place like this before," Nami agreed, rubbing her red eyes. "I think I would remember if we were!"

Robin nodded. "But we have," she said, "Don't any of you remember? Shortly before we went to Skypiea we stopped by another island. One called Ruluka?"

"Ruluka?" Usopp whispered, thinking back, "Oh, yeah! That was the place with all those ridiculous taxes!" His eyes suddenly widen as he realized what Robin was hinting at, "Wait! You talking about the Rainbow Mist?!"

"Exactly," Robin nodded. "It appears we are now in a place just like that."

"The Rainbow Mist?" Brook and Franky asked together in confusion.

"Sounds like a wild place," Franky muttered, thinking it over.

"It was pretty," Chopper said, thinking back to how he and Sanji were at shore watching the sparkling mist that was made up of every color he could think of. It truly did get the right name. "I remember how you guys went inside it and then just disappeared!"

"Disappeared?" Brook asked in amazement. "That sounds like an amazing trick!"

"It was no trick," Robin explained, "We ended up getting trapped there and were lucky to escape. The Rainbow Mist is a mysterious fog that is actually a gateway to another dimension."

"Another dimension?" Brook whispered in awe.

"That's right," Nami whined, thinking back to all the treasure that she found there on those shipwrecks, "I remember all the treasure that was left behind!"

"You would be upset about that," Usopp snapped, "We were almost trapped there for good!"

"It went by several different names," Robin went on, "Any ship who enters the Rainbow Mist is automatically transported to the dimension known as Ape's Concert in which all ships and their crews and passengers are trapped inside. It's most commonly known as the ship's graveyard."

"And you've seen it?" Brook asked in astonishment, "I've heard many stories about such a place, but I never believed that it actually existed!"

"Ship's graveyard," Franky said to himself, he could imagine what such a place would be… a final resting place for ships… it must be a sight to see.

"It was only through luck that we made it out before the pathway closed," Robin informed them. "Time there moved differently than it did in the outside world. There was a group of kids who had been trapped there for decades, but when we met them, they had barely aged a day. They didn't even realize that they had been there for years. That place was a limbo…"

"But what does that have to do with what's going on here?" Zoro asked in annoyance.

"Remember when Sanji and Franky both came running back when they went off to look for a way out?" Robin asked him. "It's just like how Ape's Concert was. Somehow, in this place, it is a space loop, which means it takes anyone back to the point in from which they started. Before, I remember firing a cannon ball from the front of the ship only for it to land behind us when we were in the Mist. I believe that we are trapped in a place similar to that."

"So this is Ape's Concert?" Chopper asked, looking around at the darkness. "It's creepier than I thought it would be."

"Not as creepy as that ship's graveyard was," Nami disagreed, "It doesn't look anything like where we were before. But if Robin's right about it, then it would explain how you guys kept coming back."

"But how did you guys get out of there in the first place?" Franky asked.

"Yeah, we can get out the same way!" Brook agreed happily.

But Robin was shaking her head. "That was different as well. We saw the way out thanks to the setting sun, it showed us which way to go. However, it was the explosion that gave us that final leap."

"Explosion?" Brook repeated, thinking it over for a second before he screamed. "WERE YOU TRYING TO KILL YOURSELVES?"

"I always did wonder what happened to that place," Robin said thoughtfully, "I mean, time and space were disrupted thanks to us."

"Dude, just what kind of trouble were you all getting yourselves into?" Franky yelled alarmed.

"So we just have to blow this place up?" Usopp asked them, truly having enough of this weird place anyway.

"Hang on!" Nami cried, before they got too into the idea, "We don't know what will happen! We could end up getting trapped here for good if we do something that crazy! And let's not forget that we still don't have the slightest idea to where Luffy is! We have to find him first before we get out! And the sooner we do, the happier I'll be!"

"You can count on my Nami my love!" Sanji cried out, hearts in his eyes as he gazed at her.

"And I mean now!" she yelled angrily at him.

"Great, but how do you suggest we do that?" Zoro asked, "If we can't go anywhere then how are we gonna find that rubber idiot?"

But it was like this place didn't want them to look for Luffy or a way out. It faded again so that they were back in Luffy's memories, after which, they couldn't bring themselves to stop watching.

"Damn," Franky said, looking around at the trees, disappointed that he didn't get a chance to use the rockets in his shoulders to blow something up.

"What's going on now?" Chopper asked, wondering just what they were going to see now. They quickly spotted Luffy and Ace leaning up against some trees in the clearing, but to their surprise, they weren't alone. Garp was there with them, drinking heavily.

"Not what I expected," Usopp said nervously, "They look almost… calm. I was thinking that he was going to start 'training' them again."

"In other words, 'try to kill them'," Sanji summarized for him.

"I think that Garp might've heard about Sabo," Zoro informed them, looking at the grim look in Garp's eyes. They fell silent at that… yes, that would be enough to stop Garp's abusive behavior. As rough and hard-headed as Garp was, even he knew that there was a time and place for that.

As if answering their question, Garp pulled the bottle from his lips and sighed heavily. "I see," he said, in an unusually soft voice. "So that squirt's really gone."

Luffy sniffled a little, but his eyes were dry. "It's Sabo," he said tightly, "Not squirt!"

"Yeah, he had a name you know," Ace agreed crossly.

Garp gazed at his grandsons. Normally he'd tell them off or hit them for their rudeness, but given the circumstances, it seemed as if he would let it go for now. "I'm sorry for that," he said tilting his head back again.

"I'm surprised at how respectful he's being," Brook said hoarsely.

"He's rough around the edges, but I think he does have a soft spot, even if he is insane," Nami said quietly, also sitting down with Usopp as she watched the scene with sad eyes. "Sabo deserves this much at least."

"I don't get why it had to happen like that," Ace said to no one in particular. "It just doesn't make sense. So he was in front of those noble's ships… he didn't do anything! Dogra just said that he saw them fire at him."

"I don't doubt that," Garp answered him grimly, "A tiny boat against that galleon? It wouldn't have stood a chance. That's just the type of people the Celestial Dragon's are."

"Why don't you arrest them?" Luffy asked, looking up at him angrily, "The guys who did it? You can do that right? They killed Sabo for no reason!"

"Unfortunately, the marines _work_ for the Celestial Dragons," Sanji said in disgust. "He can't do anything like that. They have the whole world tied to a string."

"I'm afraid I can't," Garp told Luffy, a sad look in his eyes.

"But why?" Luffy demanded, jumping up and staring at him. "You always say that Marines uphold justice and arrest bad people! So arrest the ones who killed Sabo!"

"This is just cruel," Usopp choked, tears coming again.

"They want justice for their brother," Robin sighed, "they accepted the fact that Sabo's dead, but they want to see the ones who killed him to pay. But they know that nothing that can be done about it. It would be hard for anyone to swallow. Their promise to go out to sea did help them with the pain, but it won't be enough to make it go away. It's only natural that we want those who hurt us to suffer for it."

"But here they're up against someone they can't win against," Nami added, laying her cheek against her hand, "Dadan was right. They'd get themselves killed. Even a Marine Hero like Garp is helpless against the World Nobles."

"I would if I could," Garp went on, laying the empty bottle beside him. "I don't like the Celestial Dragons either, but there's nothing I can do here."

"Huh, I knew that Marines are useless," Ace snapped at him.

"You got that right, kid," Zoro agreed.

"All that crap about 'justice' and 'peace' is nothing _but crap_ isn't it?" Ace demanded hotly, "There wasn't even a body by the time they were through firing! They fired Sabo's ship until there wasn't anything left!"

The Straw Hats cringed at the thought. The attack must've been truly horrific if not even the wreckage of a ship remained.

"If they never found a body…" Chopper said quietly, "Do you think that there's a chance that Sabo might still be alive? That he could've escaped?"

"I doubt it," Sanji said, shaking his head. "I'd like to think that, believe me, I think that would be amazing if that's what happened. But if he _was_ still alive, then why didn't he ever once try to get in contact with Luffy and Ace? Even if it's just a quick message? He surely would've known they would hear about the attack and think he was dead. He could've done something just to let them know that he was ok and not to worry about him during all these years."

"He could've been protecting them?" Usopp offered, but even to him, the lie sounded pathetic.

"Maybe," Zoro said, "But I find that unlikely. I don't remember ever hearing about a pirate like him before, and as far as I'm aware of, he didn't show up at Marineford to help Ace. You think that if he was alive and heard that his brother was in trouble, he'd sit back and not do anything? If he _is_ still alive, then he must have given up his dream of being a pirate or forgotten about his brothers. No, I doubt that there's any way he's still out there."

"If he was, can you imagine the look on Luffy-san's face?" Brook sighed wistfully, "It would be such a heart-warming scene."

"No point in worrying about it now," Robin said softly, "I think a part of Luffy might've held onto that hope for awhile, but it's been twelve years since then. I'm sure he must've made peace with that idea by now."

She frowned to herself. It was Ace's death that she was concerned about. It was a small mercy, but Luffy never had to watch Sabo's death… he wasn't haunted at the sight of seeing him die. Her eyes sadden… Saul…

Though she only knew him for a short time, he will always hold a special place in her heart. Even after over twenty years, his death still tormented her. As she looked at the child Ace, she knew that his death was very different from Sabo's. Luffy only spent a few months with him at most… but the bond that he had with Ace was much stronger. They spent years together and Ace died in front of him. That had to mess with his head and it saddened her greatly to wonder just what her captain had gone through.

"Gramps?" Ace suddenly asked. "Why would they do something like that? Sabo didn't do anything to deserve it. Why can they get away with doing this but the rest of us can't?"

They could see that Garp looked uncomfortable, as if wondering how he could explain it. The Straw Hats knew that he didn't have any more say in this than they did. How were you to explain to two young boys that the reason that their brother's murderer won't ever answer to his crimes was because they didn't answer to anyone? They all knew that the reason that the Celestial Dragons could get away with their cruel and murderous habits was because they knew that they could.

But how could he explain that one?

Garp stared off ahead before he finally answered, "Humans are complicated creatures, and that's what makes them human. I think I've heard that saying somewhere in the South Blue. It's something I often thought about when faced with a situation like this. Everyone wants to get stronger… but without a purpose for that strength, they don't know what to do with it… and often find ways to take it out on others in a bad way."

"I don't get it," Luffy said predictably.

"He means that power has a bad way of getting you to misuse it when you don't have a good purpose for it," Sanji said sourly.

"Perhaps the Celestial Dragons were good rulers a few hundred years ago, but they lost sight of it all since then," Nami sighed.

"Personally I doubt there was any humanity in them to begin with," Franky said angrily.

Garp continued to look up at the bright blue sky, a pair of seagulls were flying overhead as he said softly, "Humans are complicated, that's what makes us human. In other words, I guess there'll always be a part of us that fears change even when we need it most."

"He may not be good with words," Robin said softly, "But he does know how to get to the point."

"What are you talking about?" Ace demanded fiercely, not getting it.

"I don't know for sure what that means myself," Garp answered sadly, "But I think it means that sometimes you just have to accept things the way they are."

There was silence for a moment. The Straw Hats all knew that feeling all too well. Just sit back and let something go even when it felt like going against everything you ever believed in? The very idea made them all feel hallow… alone… revenged helped to ease that hollowness.

"I can't accept this," Ace said angrily, turning his back on him as Luffy watched them both miserably.

"But there's nothing that can be done about it," Garp sighed, "Believe me, if I could, I'd arrest them and make them pay for what happened. But there's nothing that anyone can do when faced with the Celestial Dragons."

"So they can do whatever the hell they want to us and if we fight back we get killed for it?!" Ace yelled, "How is that fair?!"

"Life isn't fair, but that's life," Garp said looking at them both firmly, "And even if you could do something about it, what good would it do?"

Luffy and Ace both blinked in surprise.

"He makes a fair point," Brook said, looking down. If he still had a face, they would've been able to see his completely miserable expression. "A life, once gone, can never be brought back. Of course, what happened with me was the one exception to that rule."

"I mean…" Garp went on, "Even with all the strength and influence in the world, you can't bring Sabo back. Not even justice can do that."

"I know that!" Ace yelled, before sitting back down angrily, his hands curled into fists, "But that doesn't mean I have to like it!"

"Ace…" Luffy said sadly as Garp stood up.

"I'll let this go for now," he said, turning back and heading through the trees where they could just make out the bandit's house. "But next time I come here, we'll begin training again!"

"Oh, God," Usopp whispered, sweating a little at the thought. "I hurt just thinking about it."

Luffy waited until his gramps was out of his sight before he went over to Ace's shaking form.

"Ace?" he asked worriedly.

"Why should we be Marines?" Ace demanded, his bangs hiding his eyes. "Why does he want us to join them so badly? What's so special about them anyway? It sounds like all they do is protect people like the nobles. If being a Marine means that I have to work for the same people who killed Sabo, then I'll never join."

The memory faded then and there.

"I see now why they fought so hard against the idea of being Marines," Brook said softly.

"But Ace was right," Sanji said angrily. "The Marines are no more than pets to the nobles. How could anyone work for someone who killed someone you cared about…?"

Nami looked down, remembering how painful it had been for her to work for the same monster that took her mother from her. Her hand went to her tattoo as she thought how she was forced to work for Arlong—how that awful tattoo he forced her to get… wearing that disgusting mark made it feel as if he owned her… like she was his property. She hated every moment of that… even now she felt sick at the thought. She could swear that getting stabbed in the heart would've hurt less than having to be forced to smile every time she looked at him.

She shook her head hard, trying to rid herself of those thoughts. It didn't matter anymore. She was free from that life. But at the same time she could understand where Ace was coming from. Why didn't the Marines ever come for her and her village? They were forced to survive on their own for eight long years… without any hope that someone would come and save them. And by the time they finally did come… they were paid off by Arlong to steal all the money that was going to buy their freedom! Her eyes narrowed. Yes, she agreed with Ace completely… she wouldn't ever join the Marines after that.

The memory came back and they had the blink several times to realize what they were seeing wasn't a hallucination. At first, they didn't recognize it, but when they realized that they were standing on the edge of the forest, with the giant wall that led to Edge Town in the distance… it could only be one place.

"Is this?" Chopper asked, staring around them, unable to believe what he was seeing.

"It is. This is the Gray Terminal," Robin answered grimly, "Or rather… what's left of it."

It was a barren wasteland, the ground was covered in nothing but a thick layer of ash and burnt pieces of metal. The whole air smelled richly of charcoal—almost like a giant bonfire. The mountains of trash were now replaced with all this… plains of dust. While it was an improvement in many ways, they felt sick at the thought of how it was created.

"Shows just how enormous that fire was," Franky said, taking off his glasses to get a better look. "Anything that wasn't destroyed was probably cleaned up by the guards and dumped somewhere else where they couldn't see it.

"I just can't stand it," Nami whispered, shaking in anger, fighting the urge to be sick.

Chopper wasn't any better, he was crying hard at the thought of all those poor people… just how did these guys sleep at night? Did the ones who come in to clean this place kill any survivors? Or was the fire so great that there wasn't anything left? He just didn't know anymore.

There were footsteps behind them and they looked to see the two boys coming out of the forest and walking through the ash. There was so much that they were soon covered with it head to foot—they didn't say anything as they followed the two, staring around in horror.

"Hard to believe that this used to be the Gray Terminal," Ace said looking around, his expression didn't show any emotion, but his eyes were filled with anger at what happened here. "There's nothing left."

"I'm so glad that they made it out of that," Chopper sighed, "That was terrible."

"Ace look!" Luffy called, pointing a ways away. They looked up in time to see that a few giant carts were coming through the gates. Ace pulled Luffy back a little ways to make sure that the guards couldn't see them. "What's with the carts?" Luffy asked innocently.

"Wait," Sanji said, looking furious. "Don't tell me…"

"What's wrong, Sanji?" Nami asked. But before he could answer they heard the sounds of crashing and bangs. It was from when the guards there were dumping garbage back near the front gates.

"They're still dumping trash here?!" Chopper screamed out.

"I don't believe them!" Franky yelled. "After what they did they're filling it back up?!"

He wasn't the only one outraged. "It's only been a week, and they're already starting to fill up again!" Ace yelled.

"Wasteful," Sanji growled, now chewing on his cigarette. "What bastards."

"At this rate, it's all going to look the same as it did _before_ the fire," Usopp said, thinking of Trash Mountain. "It'll look just like before."

"And not just like before," Robin said, her eyes void of all emotion. "It will be like the fire never happened. Garp was right… humans never change even when they need to."

"They won't set another fire like before when it fills up will they?" Luffy asked worriedly, taking hold of Ace's arm.

"Most likely," Zoro said grumpily. "Why not? If they think it works then they'll do it again if they have too."

"I don't know," Ace admitted, looking down at him, "But in any case, we should avoid this place as often as we can in the future… let's not get into another mess like last time. In fact, I think that it's good that we avoid Goa for a while too." His hands were curled into fists again. "Just thinking about them makes me want to break something! I mean, just look at this place!"

He held his arms wide out to mean the Gray Terminal, and they all nodded with him.

"You think they would at least leave it like how they created it!" Nami said furiously. "But they're falling right back into their disgusting habit of throwing their garbage out like this!"

"So long as it doesn't bother their status or their places in High Town, I don't think they care," Brook told her.

"You know," Luffy said, as Ace grabbed hold of his arm and tugged him back through the jungles. "I remember Grandpa saying that if there's one thing that people've been good at… its destruction."

"You don't know the half of it," Robin whispered, thinking of how much death and pain had been caused by wars over the years.

Ace sighed, "That I can believe, but there has to be a limit."

They all gazed sadly at each other as Ace led Luffy back through the forest.

"Humans are strange creatures," Robin said, "We never learn from our mistakes."

She stared long and hard at the two boys as she became lost in thought. There had to be a limit to what you can sacrifice in the name of justice. Most Marines follow "Absolute Justice", when it comes to prosecuting those who violate the government's laws. But their policy of absolute justice makes them seem worse than the very evil that they claim to fight. Ace was right… there had to be a limit.

Suddenly they were in the clearing where they had once trained with Sabo—in fact, the old scoreboard was still there with the remains of chalk on it. As if Sabo had only just erased the scores from the day before and were now starting over fresh.

Both boys were facing each other, both of them getting ready to charge the other.

"Don't know why they bother," Nami sighed, "Luffy said so himself that he was never once able to beat Ace."

"Never?" Brook asked in wonder.

"Luffy's a monster," Usopp said deadpanned. "So it only makes sense that his big brother was an even bigger monster."

"Some people just never learn," Franky laughed.

"Alright!" Ace yelled out, "Let's settle this!"

Luffy was the first to charge ahead, "Here I come, Ace!" he shouted, pulling his fist back for the first attack. Ace just stood there with his arms folded, as if waiting to see what his little brother had up his sleeve.

Luffy spun his arm around in circles the whole way before he screamed out, "Gum Gum… PISTOL!"

And like they had seen countless times before, his fist flew straight as an arrow and towards Ace. Ace looked surprised for a brief moment before he moved out of the way at the last moment. For a second, there was a big smile on Luffy's face—proud that he had gotten his move to work—at least until his arm came flying back at him… striking him in the face, spinning him around, and falling flat on his back.

"Well, he's gotten better," Brook chuckled as they all laughed as well, feeling a little better watching something more light-hearted than the last few memories.

"But he still has a long way to go," Zoro grinned. "The stronger that he gets, the stronger Ace will get."

Ace burst out laughing at the sight of it. "What the hell was that?" he demanded, holding onto his stomach as he laughed. "You call this a fight? No matter how much force you put into it, there's no point if you can't hit me!"

"Harsh but true," Sanji smirked. "Like a pistol, it's only dangerous if you know how to aim."

"I told you, rubber really isn't suitable for battle," Ace finished saying.

"Oh, he won't like that," Chopper said knowingly. And sure enough, Luffy was sitting up and yelling at Ace to shut up.

"What?" Ace yelled, for some reason, also losing his temper. "Are you trying to say I'm wrong? You're just an anchor who's immune to blows!"

"Yeah, but no one likes being told their weak," Usopp said rubbing the back of his head.

"Don't make fun of my Gum Gum fruit!" Luffy yelled, their heads so close that they were touching—it looked so much like how they argued after Luffy was saved from Porchemy that they almost expected Sabo to step between them and break them apart.

"One of these days I'm gonna make you cry!" Luffy screamed out, "After all, I've thought of a technique more powerful than pistol!"

"Great, but can you _hit_ something with it?" Franky asked, still laughing.

Just then, they could've sworn they heard Sabo's voice saying, _"Luffy! Great job! You're arm stretched further than it did yesterday!"_

"You tell them Sabo!" Usopp said, before he realized what he said and froze. "Wait…"

"Sabo?!" Chopper cried out in disbelief as he turned to where the voice was, but there wasn't anything there. "Sabo…?"

Ace turned to point and called out, "Sabo! You're far too easy on Luffy!"

"I knew it!" Luffy shouted out proudly, "I really did become stronger than yesterday!"

"HEY, SABO!" they called together, until they realized that they had been talking to a rock.

"What was that?" Nami said startled, "I could've sworn I just heard Sabo speaking."

"See?" Chopper said, pointing ahead of him with a hoof, "Sabo _is_ alive!"

"No, I think that we just believed we did," Robin corrected gently.

"But if that wasn't Sabo, then who was it?" Usopp demanded.

"We've been over this," Zoro said in annoyance. "He's not coming back."

"Maybe Luffy-san was imagining hearing his brother so strongly that he truly believed that he heard him," Brook came up with, "A dream?"

"I guess that would be the best explanation," Nami said thinking it over, the hope being punctured in her chest.

"But then how did Ace hear him?" Chopper demanded.

"Do you see the kid anywhere?" Sanji demanded. "No! If Nami-swan says that we were dreaming then we were!"

Zoro on the other hand was frowning as he thought it over. He remembered back to when he trained after Kuina died—how whenever he trained by himself, he could almost swear that there were times where he thought he could feel her watching him grow stronger. But he knew that was crazy… he was there at her funeral. She was gone. Yet how could he sometimes feel her presence here? Was that a dream or something more?

Both brothers were red in the face as they realized that they had shouted at a boulder. Luffy sighed as he walked a few feet away. "Sabo was such a kind older brother," he said sadly.

"He really was," Chopper said sitting down with Usopp and Nami. "I wish I could've met him."

But for some reason, Ace looked affronted and suddenly yelled at him, "What's that supposed to mean? Are you saying you rather _I_ died instead?"

"Where he get that?" Nami asked, almost falling over.

"I never said that!" Luffy shouted back at him.

"But that's basically what you meant!" Ace screamed back, and hit him hard on the head.

"I don't think he did," Chopper said in surprise.

"OWWWW!" Luffy screamed out, rubbing the spot where Ace hit him. "Sabo never punched me like that!"

"What was that?" he yelled back.

"What's with you?" Luffy screamed out. "Be a little nicer, will you?"

"No way!"

And that was when they both lost it and began tearing at each other in a wrestling match.

"And they're going at it again…" Nami sighed, rubbing her head in frustration, "I'm beginning to wonder if Ace'll ever change."

"I think they're dealing with the stress of everything that's happened the only way they know how," Robin said, "With fighting."

"Fair enough," Brook said, "After all, most people would've lost their minds after experiencing so much all at once. All in all, I think they're dealing with it surprisingly well."

The darkness came and went and soon they were back outside the bandit's house—only now there were two little huts standing next to it. It couldn't have been any clearer that the boys built them by themselves—while Ace's seemed stable enough, Luffy's looked second hand and crooked—as if it could fall over at any second… but he seemed proud of it as he stood back and admired it.

"Why don't they go back to the hideout?" Chopper asked.

"Too many memories," Robin answered simply as they watched the two place a couple signs over the entrance of each hut. She knew that they wouldn't want to go back to live in that tree house… as if nothing had happened. Especially since Sabo, not only came up with the idea, but helped to build it.

Suddenly, the boys were now putting up signs over the entrance of each little fort.

One said, "ACE'S COUNTRY" and the other "LUFFY'S COUNTRY"

"Countries?" Chopper asked as he watched Ace and Luffy throwing a couple crumbled-up pieces of paper inside the bandit's house before they sat down in their little huts.

"When siblings are angry at each other, they often feel the need to draw a line between them," Robin laughed, "In other words, anything on their side of the line belongs to them and the other isn't allowed to cross it. But that normally disappears once they calm down."

"I don't get it," Chopper said shaking his head. "I don't like seeing them fight like this."

"Just a way to give yourself some space," Sanji answered him, thinking back to all the times he had to leave the kitchen with all the other chiefs there yelling at each other. "There's only so much of someone you can take before you snap. That's why you need some time to cool down and think things through."

Dadan and the boys stepped out. "What is it now?" she asked them, staring from one to another.

Luffy sat there with his arms folded and said firmly, "I'm gonna learn how to survive on my own. You guys can be Dadan's Country."

"I'm gonna borrow your bath every now and again," Ace added, before the two looked away from each other with an angry huff.

"Well, I wonder how long they're gonna fight this time," Franky laughed as Dadan just sighed and went back inside. "This is funny."

"I think Dadan has the right idea, just let them fight and deal with it on their own," Sanji said.

"I wouldn't worry. I know a thing or two about brothers. It always works out the same way," Franky laughed, "Siblings always argue, and they always march off on their own…"

"But they always make up sooner or later," Brook laughed, "Because it's no fun playing alone."

"Really? Good," Chopper said happily.

The next memory was of the sky darkening overhead and the distant rumble echoing.

"A storm's coming," Nami said at once as she glanced up at the gray clouds, "A pretty big storm's too by the looks of it. I think it'd be good for them to stay in Dadan's house tonight. Those little huts won't do much."

"Look!" Chopper yelled, pointing a little ways ahead of them to something that was moving ahead of them. Moving a little closer to see through the trees, they were taken aback to see what was happening.

Usopp let out a startled shriek when he saw the Bear King—the Tiger Lord's equal—tower over Luffy, who was completely backed into a corner, Ace was watching from a tree overhead.

Luffy held up his staff, his hands shaking a little, before he turned and called up to Ace, "Ace! Help me out! It's the Bear King!"

"Ah?" Ace called, sounding much like how he did when they first met him. "I thought you said you were gonna survive on your own, right?"

"He's gonna regret doing that," Zoro said, knowing that this couldn't end well. "Luffy always gets hurt even when someone's there to make sure he stays out of trouble. And he still can't throw a decent punch without missing."

Luffy frowned at him, but still turned back to the bear. It roared as he stood over Luffy, holding up its large claws. Luffy cursed softly to himself before he decided to take a chance and jumped up to strike it with the staff. The bear swatted at him as if he were a fly, but Luffy was quick enough to dodge. But after he succeeded in getting in another hit was where Luffy pushed his luck…

The bear struck at him again, but this time, it hit…

Luffy didn't have time to dodge as the bear's claws came flying down at him.

"LUFFY MOVE!" Sanji screamed out, but it was too late. Luffy's scream was swallowed whole as the bear's claws slashed across his small body and ripped him open so that blood was splattered everywhere—dying the clearing they were in a bright red.

The Straw Hats all gasped, petrified at the damage they saw, as Ace lost his cool attitude completely and screamed out Luffy's name as the little boy hit the ground and didn't move.

"AHHHHHH! This is bad!" Chopper screamed out as Ace jumped from the tree, not even bothering to grab his own staff, as he charged the bear. Chopper went running to Luffy to check the damage and stared horrified at it. Luffy's chest was completely torn open so that he could see inside him, blood was squirting out and the memory around them turned hazy and distorted.

"This is bad!" Chopper screamed, and the others ran up to him as well, "He's losing too much blood! At this rate he'll bleed to death in minutes!"

Ace attacked the bear with as much force as he could muster, but even his best punch didn't seem to do much effect except to annoy it.

"He doesn't have time to stay and fight!" Usopp called, feeling himself turn sick at looking at Luffy. Ace obviously knew that as well as he kicked out at the bear's head and ran over. "Luffy?! LUFFY!" he screamed out desperately, holding up Luffy's head up in his arms. Luffy didn't move, his eyes cracked open slightly, but he seemed out of it as Ace stared around desperately—as if hoping that someone would appear and help.

But no one did and the bear was coming back. So Ace did the only thing he could do; he grabbed Luffy and went running away from the bear, stopping only to grab the straw hat along the way.

"Is Luffy-san alright?" Brook gasped out, as they chased after them, Luffy leaving a trail of blood along the whole way.

Usopp was hugging himself and cringing at the memory. "Oh, it looked like it hurt so bad!" he cried out shaking.

"Luffy was lucky that he wasn't killed," Robin said, though even she sounded scared.

"Don't say that!" Usopp yelled at her.

"It's just lucky that Luffy's so strong even as a kid," Chopper cried out, trying to stay calm as he ran faster, trying to ignore the drops of blood every few feet. "A normal human would've died from an injury like that almost at once!"

"I knew he wasn't able to take that thing on," Zoro gritted his teeth together, feeling a strong surge of anger at Ace for not keeping a closer eye on Luffy. For crying out loud, when your little brother is asking for help isn't that what you're supposed to do? What the hell was Ace thinking letting that idiot take that bear on? "Didn't Ace say that the bear was as strong as the tiger? And it took all three of them to take that thing out?"

"Anger clouds how we think," Brook answered simply.

Ace must've felt the blood dripping down because he suddenly stopped and turned to try and treat Luffy's injuries. He put his hands over the wound in a desperate attempt to stop the bleeding. "Luffy?" he cried out, sounding close to panicking, "Can you hear me?"

Already, Luffy was so pale that he was looking sickly. His face was covered with droplets of blood as he whimpered softly, forcing his eyes to look up at Ace. For a moment, it was as if he didn't even recognize him, but he blinked a few times and finally croaked out, "I… I'm sorry, Ace."

"What's he apologizing for? _He's_ the one hurt!" Usopp cried out incredulously. But the look on Ace's face was as if Luffy had torn out his heart. He looked as if he was about to cry, but he didn't say anything as he carried him piggyback through the forest just as the rain came pouring down.

"Seriously, how bad is it, Chopper?" Nami asked him, gasping for breath.

"Really bad!" came his answer, wishing that he could do something to treat him right now. Ace might've known enough about medicine for basic first-aid, but Luffy needed real medical attention. In record time, Ace had gotten back to the bandits home and he hammered on the door.

"Hey!" he screamed out, his eyes wide in panic. "Anyone there in Dadan's country? Luffy's hurt! Please, someone help!"

It seemed to take an hour for the door to open, even though it was only a few seconds, and it was Magra who was there, looking out in confusion. As soon as he saw him, Ace seemed to become hysterical and he begged out, "MAGRA! Please help, Luffy!"

"Now, now," Magra said, startled as he stood back and let them in. "Come in, quickly."

Ace almost flew inside, leaving a large puddle of water with every step he took.

"I don't want to see," Nami said shaking her head, thinking of the horrible wound and unable to bring herself to follow and watch them treat it.

"But I need to see it!" Chopper said, the only one brave enough to go into the house and watch to see what was going on.

The rest of them sat there silently as they waited for Chopper to come back out. Robin passed the time, holding her hands out to watch the rain fall through them without getting wet or cold. "So strange…" she whispered to herself.

Usopp gulped a little before he asked them, "That was hard to watch."

"He lives," Zoro answered him crossly, "He doesn't even have a scar from all this."

"I know that Luffy's gonna be ok," Usopp snapped at him, "but still… that wasn't easy to see! I mean, if I didn't know for a fact that Luffy pulls through, I would've said that he was dead!"

"Look like our captain has had a livelier past than we ever thought," Robin said almost absentmindedly. "First there was what happened with Shanks, fighting the tiger, everything with Sabo and Bluejam, as well as the fire…"

"How could he not go crazy from all this?" Nami demanded.

"He's always been like that," Sanji muttered, "No matter what's happened, he hasn't changed a bit since the stubborn kid we've been watching."

"But that's not true," Usopp said, thinking it over, "He's not the same person that he was before we were all separated two years ago. Haven't you noticed?"

"Luffy-san is so much stronger than before," Brook said softly.

"He doesn't mean that," Zoro said, having noticed it long ago as well. "He means that Luffy's seemed to have changed since then… on the inside I mean. I can't put my finger on it, but there's something in him that's not the same anymore."

"Most likely to whatever happened on that battlefield," Robin agreed softly.

Franky frowned before he asked, "Did he ever tell any of you guys to what happened then?"

"Not me," most of them said, but Usopp looked down sadly.

"He only ever mentioned that after Ace died, the reason he didn't completely lose it was because of Jinbe," he told them.

"When did he say that?" Sanji asked in surprise.

"On Fishman Island when he was telling Camie that he really wanted to see Jinbe," he answered, "Chopper heard it to. I wanted to know what he was talking about, but I couldn't bring myself to ask him."

"I don't remember him saying anything about that," Sanji said, thinking back.

"You were too busy drooling over the mermaids to listen," Usopp retorted with narrow eyes.

"I want to know exactly what happened there, but at the same time I'm terrified to know," Nami said softly, resting her chin on her knees. "I just don't know what to do."

"I felt sick to myself for finding out how I did," Usopp confessed. "There I was, only concerned about filling my face and then I got the paper and…?" he trailed off, still ashamed of himself. "Once I heard about Ace's death, it tore me apart inside just thinking how much pain Luffy had to have been in. At that moment, I knew I had to get off that island even if it killed me. If I couldn't even be there to help support him… what right did I have to call myself a friend?"

"I think we all felt the same way," Sanji said grimly. "We all felt ashamed of ourselves for spending all that time lost on some islands in the middle of nowhere while our captain stormed Marineford. I think that we were all about ready to do some drastic things to get back to the Sunny. At least until I heard about Luffy going back to Marineford and sending us that message."

"It was Rayleigh who thought it through," Robin sighed. "While I agree that it was for the best, these last two years hadn't been easy."

"Not for any of us," Zoro agreed, "But at least this way we're strong enough to make sure that something like that won't happen again…"

"I hope not," Nami whispered to herself just as Chopper came back out of the house, he was shaking.

"How is Luffy-san, Chopper-san?" Brook asked him.

Chopper came over to them and sighed, "It was a serious injury like I said before. Magra's treating him now. But if that wound was just a little deeper, his heart could've been ripped out."

"Ouch," Sanji winced. "He'll feel that in the morning."

"He's all bandaged up now, so we can see him," Chopper said, leading the way back. Slowly getting up from where they were, they all followed him—passing through the house. "I think the other bandits are out," Chopper went on, "He's the only person here."

"Good thing that he was here," Usopp said, moving passed Franky girth so that he could get a close look at Luffy. Luffy was a pale as the sheet, covered head to foot in bandages, his face was contorted in pain as Magra dabbed at his forehead with a cool cloth.

Zoro took one look at the child in the bed before glancing around the room. Sure enough, he spotted Ace huddled in a ball against the wall, his arms covering his face so that he couldn't see his expression… his shaking shoulders told him everything he need to know.

Magra had just finished dabbing at Luffy's head before he said, "Now, now… this is no joke. If the wound had been any deeper, he would've died."

"But he should be just fine," Chopper reassured his crew. "I got a good look at him and he should recover soon. Given at how fast he heals."

Magra turned to Ace, and asked, "You three have always fought those wild beasts as a team right?"

Ace was still shaking like a leave and when he spoke, his voice was thick with emotion. "It's my fault… I thought I learned that fighting on your own doesn't prove that you're strong… but…"

"He's… crying…" Chopper whispered as he stared at him, his own eyes wide. This was the first time he'd ever seen Ace cry. Even after they heard about Sabo… he never shed tears.

"Can you blame him?" Brook asked sadly, gazing at Luffy, "He must be feeling so guilty for this."

"But it wasn't his fault…" Nami said automatically, her heart going out to him, "Luffy shouldn't have tried to take that thing on his own."

"Nonetheless, Nami-swan… the sad thing is, it _was_ his fault. It was his job to keep an eye on Luffy," Sanji said firmly. "And remember that Luffy did ask for help, but Ace ignored him."

"And Ace knows that as well, that's why he's beating himself up for it," Zoro agreed, "And Luffy obviously doesn't blame him either… that's only making him feel worse."

Ace seemed to be fighting the tears, but they were falling down his face all the same. "I'm worthless!" he cried out, now sobbing outright, "Completely worthless."

"Ace…" Magra said gently as Chopper sniffled a little at Ace's heartbroken tone.

"I'm so sorry, Luffy," he croaked out. Luffy moved a little in bed, as if he could hear him and tried to answer, but he couldn't seem to wake himself up. "So… sorry…"

"So I think that's when he really starts to change," Sanji said softly.

"He already lost one brother," Robin reminded him quietly, "And he almost ended up losing his second. The idea of him losing Luffy was unbearable to him. And not just because he promised Sabo that he would take care of him, but also because then he'd be alone."

"He just didn't realize how much he meant to him till now," Usopp said quietly, now fully understanding.

"You never do realize how important someone is to you until you lose them," Brook said softly, thinking of his old crew. "Ace-san is lucky that this accident wasn't fatal."

"Yeah, he probably would never have recovered if Luffy did die from that," Nami said looking down. "I don't think that he could've ever forgiven himself for that."

"You'd never guess it," Usopp said, pacing the room. "I mean, he just charges in without thinking about it! I swear that he has a death wish or something! After all, he just wouldn't run no matter who he was up against!"

Zoro looked away, he didn't say anything to contradict Usopp, but he knew the feeling of refusing to run all too well. He knew that the reason that Ace stayed in that fire to fight Bluejam was so that he could protect Luffy. He, himself, often stayed his ground to fight against someone as well…

He put a hand to his chest as he remembered his first meeting with Mihawk. How his tiny knife had pierced his chest—so close to his heart… how his rival had asked him why he wouldn't step back…

Zoro couldn't explain it… even to himself why he didn't move. All he knew was that if he moved to retreat, if he took so much as one step backwards, everything that had made him who he was would've fallen away from him. He couldn't have lived with himself if he let that happen… there really wouldn't have been anything left of him. Was that what Ace felt when he stood his ground to fight? That he would lose Luffy, Sabo, or someone else he cared about if he ran?

He glanced down at the crying Ace again, wondering if this was the first time he had ever shed tears for someone…

He could see now that Ace wasn't afraid of death, rather his greatest fear was failing…

Ace didn't move where he was the entire time. Even as Magra left him alone, saying that he would be back with more medicine later, he sat there by Luffy's side well into the night as the storm went on outside, rattling the windows and door. Once in awhile, Luffy would whimper in his sleep and cringe softly.

"Ace really needs to sleep," Chopper said quietly as suddenly Luffy began to cry softly.

"Luffy!" Ace said at once, and was at his side in an instant. "Luffy what's wrong? Come on, talk to me, Luffy!"

"Is he in that much pain?" Usopp asked anxiously.

"Well, I'm sure it's not exactly a tickle he's feeling," Sanji said grumpily.

"I think he's having a nightmare," Robin said softly.

"No… Sabo! Ace…!" Luffy sobbed in his sleep as Ace was looking around, trying to figure out what he should do. Finally, he decided on gently shaking him awake.

"He should be careful!" Chopper said as he shook Luffy's quivering shoulders, "If he's not then he could re-open those wounds!"

"Oh, I doubt that he'd let himself be that careless," Brook said softly.

"NO!" Luffy continued to shout, scream and cry… "IT'S HOT! HOT!"

"Hot?" Franky repeated baffled, "Why would he be feeling hot?"

"He's got a fever," Chopper said at once, noticing the way he sweating and the red forehead. "It's making him delirious."

"Luffy!" Ace now shouted out, shaking him harder than ever. "Luffy, wake up… Dammit, wake up!"

Luffy's large eyes suddenly snapped open and he was gasping for breath as he looked up at Ace with tears.

"Luffy…" Ace croaked out as Luffy continued to cry.

"Hey…" Ace said, his hands shaking, "What'd I do? What's wrong?!"

"Fire…" Luffy cried out, "There was all this fire!"

"What fire?" Franky asked in frustration before he realized what he was talking about.

"He was dreaming about the Terminal Fire," Robin summarized for them.

"Luffy's afraid of fire?" Chopper asked in surprise. "But he never seemed to be scared of it before!"

"It's only natural," Robin said, "If he hadn't had any trauma from that event, then I would be worried. He was trapped in such a wild fire and thought he lost Ace back there… of course that would be traumatic for anyone. Knowing the Luffy today, I'm guessing that he must've gotten over this fear at some point in his life, but right now, it's haunting his dreams."

"Luffy?" Ace gasped, "You're safe! There's no fire here!"

It took a few minutes for Ace to calm Luffy down enough for him to stop crying. As Luffy blinked up at him, listening to the storm continue to go on outside, he noticed something strange about his brother's face.

"Ace?" Luffy asked slowly, pointing at his eyes, "Why were you crying?"

Ace looked tense by the question, and moved back a little ways. "It's nothing," he said hurriedly, wiping his eyes as he said that, "Nothing that you need to be worried about."

"I thought he'd call Luffy stupid and tell him that he wasn't crying," Usopp said.

"But if he did, then it would be like taking back that apology," Franky told him. "And the little guy couldn't do that."

"But you never cry," Luffy said, sounding surprised. "Why…?"

They all sat there watching the two as the uncomfortable silence seemed to stretch on and on. It went on for so long, that several of them felt the need to scream out, just to make sure that they didn't go deaf. But finally…

"I was scared…" Ace finally answered, hiding his face in his knees so that Luffy couldn't see him. The Straw Hats all stared long and hard at him. This was the first time that they ever heard Ace admit that he was scared of anything… and here he was admitting that he was scared that his stubbornness almost killed his little brother.

"Scared?" Luffy repeated, his eyes wide. "Because of that bear…?"

"No idiot," Ace muttered, his face still hidden. "I thought I was gonna lose you… I was terrified," he confessed.

"Ace…" Nami whispered softly.

"It was my fault you got hurt," Ace went on.

But Luffy was shaking his head. "You didn't tell me to fight the Bear King," he said. "I wanted to prove that I could fight as well as you."

"No, but I didn't help when you asked for it," he said angrily.

Nami's eyes widened. This was just like how Sanji and Zoro explained it… almost word for word. She gazed at them out of the corners of her eyes. Funny how they would know all about brothers when neither one of them had any… at least not that she knew of.

"That's ok," Luffy said, forcing a smile, even though it was obvious that he was still hurting. "I don't want you to worry. Someday, I'm gonna be even stronger than you are! So that's that."

The way he said it was like he planned for it all to happen.

Ace's head snapped up and he stared at him before he got angry again, "What the hell does that have to do with you almost dying?"

Luffy only smiled a little wider as his eyes closed and he began to drift off to sleep.

"I'm not sure I get what just happened," Nami said softly. She grew up with an older sister… but brothers were almost a new species for her. Especially these two brothers.

"I think he means that he didn't want Ace to worry about him all the time," Robin answered for her, "But knowing Luffy, I could be wrong."

Ace sat there keeping a close eye on him the whole time, but his eyes were oddly blank as he stared ahead of him and they listened to Luffy's soft breathing. As the darkness came back and the scene slowly started to fade away, they could still make out Ace's face and him saying, almost like a chant to himself, "Don't worry. I'll keep you safe this time. I promised Sabo that I would… I won't let something like that happen again. This time… I'll protect you."

And then it was gone.

The Straw Hats continued to stare ahead of them as Usopp began to cry again. "Now that has to be the sweetest thing I've ever seen!" He covered his eyes with his arm again as Franky and Chopper joined in and began to bawl with Brook's eye sockets looking watery.

"Hearing such determination takes my breath away," he cried, "Not that I can breathe anymore, yohoho…"

"I don't know how much more of this I can take," Franky sobbed, pulling out his tissue again. "I have a new song coming up… called: _A Brother's Love!_ A tearful story about a big brother determined to protect his little brother!"

"At the rate they're going we'll all drown in their tears," Robin said, looking at the waterfalls coming from their eyes.

Zoro smiled softly. This time, he could tell that Ace meant every word. The moment he said 'I'll protect you' won't be forgotten.

The next memory popped up and they were distressed at first to see that they were standing on air again. "I just can't get used to it," Franky said looking down at the ground that was far beneath them.

"Think we should go back yet?" asked a familiar voice behind them, and they turned to see that the two brothers were sitting on a thick branch high in a tree. It appeared to have been a few days since the bear attack—though Luffy was happily swinging around like a monkey, he was still pale.

"What a relief," Chopper said happily. "I'm so glad Luffy's made it through alright!"

"Wow," Luffy said, gazing out at the view.

"Wow is right," Brook said, his skull face seemed to smile as he gazed out at the sea. There was a brilliantly golden sunset, bright and warm, spreading a pretty golden red color across the ocean.

Luffy swung there happily as he watched it with Ace right beside him as always. Suddenly a gust of wind came blowing and blew his trademark straw hat right off his head. Gasping out, he almost fell as he made a wild snatch for it. Thankfully, he tightened his grip on the branch before he slipped and Ace was the one who got the hat.

"Dammit Luffy," he said in annoyance, "Don't do that."

"Sorry," he said, scrambling up to sit and taking the hat back.

"What's with that hat anyway, Luffy?" Ace asked as he watched Luffy shove it back on his head. "You never take that thing off."

"He doesn't know about how Shanks gave it to him?" Nami asked in surprise.

"I guess not," Usopp said blinking at the thought. "Maybe it never came up."

"Shanks gave it to me!" Luffy said proudly, grinning happily at his brother.

"Shanks again?" Ace asked him, leaning his back up against the tree trunk as he gazed out at the sea. "He's the one who saved you didn't he?"

"Yeah," Luffy informed him. "And I promised that I'd bring it back to him someday! It's a really important treasure to him!"

"An old hat?" Ace teased lightly.

"Shanks one said that someone really important to him gave it to him," Luffy said grinning. "Said that the man he admired most gave it to him as a present. He said that it was his old captain back when he was starting out as a cabin boy."

"I find it ironic that it was actually Ace's dad's hat," Franky said shaking his head. "I still can't believe that Ace was the son of the Pirate King. Of all people…"

'_It's almost like fate had a special interest with these two from the start,'_ Zoro thought to himself.

"So that's why you're so protective of it?" Ace asked, reaching over and tilting the hat back so that he could see Luffy's face. Luffy grinned, Ace was probably one of the only few people he let touch his precious treasure.

"And he's also the idiot who left a Devil Fruit lying around with you?" he went on, his eyebrows raised.

Luffy laughed. "Yeah, he was so upset at first. But I'm glad I ate it!" He stretched his face out happily, "Look what I can do!"

Ace shook his head at Luffy's antics. "You really don't mind being made of rubber?" he asked him, leaning back again. "I mean, it's not going to be easy going through life like that. Take it from me, most people won't take well to those who are different."

"Shanks said I was special and that others would make fun of me for it," Luffy said, thinking back as he merrily kicked his legs out, "but…"

"Shanks was absolutely right," Ace yawned as he gazed out at the sea. "If nothing else… you're weird… but that's good. But you gotta toughen up too ya know? After all, I'll be leaving here in seven years. You'll have to wait a few more before you go out… but I won't be here to protect you."

"Don't worry about me," Luffy said proudly, holding his arms up, "I'm gonna become stronger and stronger!"

Ace rolled his eyes with an amused smile. "Sure…"

"Yeah I will!" Luffy said determinedly. "You're always looking out for me! And I want you to know its ok for you to have fun sometimes too and I'd never think less of you no matter what you did. Like with the Bear King? I knew you'd get me out of there if something happened!"

Ace's eyes widen as he stared at Luffy as if he had never seen him before in his life. Zoro glanced down at Luffy. Luffy wasn't smart… but every once in awhile he gets to the heart of the matter. He had just told Ace that he didn't blame him at all for him getting hurt because he knew that he'd be there for him when it counted. And that no matter what he wanted him to be happy and he'd always admire him as his big brother even when he was seen at his weakest.

Ace looked away, his face red, but a thoughtful smile was playing around his mouth. But when he spoke, he sounded as cool and as calm as always, "Right… that'll happen when I need _you_ to rescue me."

"That's so sweet, this is killing me here!" Franky sniffled so that the darkness faded again.

"He doesn't want his brother to be worried about him," Robin smiled.

"Unfortunately, that's a requirement to hanging out with Luffy," Usopp sighed.

When the memory resumed, they saw Ace standing in front of the bandit's house with Makino while Luffy was playing with some more beetles behind the forts.

"Oh, Makino!" Sanji swooned as he almost drooled at the sight of her. "My dear! It's been too long since I've seen your beautiful face!"

"Would you stop that?" Nami demanded, rolling her eyes.

"Nami-swan, you are so beautiful even when you're chewing me out," Sanji swooned at her instead.

"Hey!" some of the bandits were calling from inside the house, thankfully breaking Sanji's romantic mood off. "Makino brought us some Sake!"

"Like they need any more reason to drink?" Nami sighed.

But Makino had her eyes on Ace. "So," she said, crouching down to talk to him face-to-face, "What was it that you wanted to ask me?"

Ace smiled at her and said resolutely, "I want you to teach me how to greet people properly."

"Greet people?" Usopp repeated in surprise.

"What brought this on all a sudden?" Franky asked.

"Well, his manners are much to be desired," Sanji whispered to himself.

"How to greet people properly?" Makino repeated in great surprise.

"Yeah," Ace nodded with a smile on his face.

"What brought about this change in attitude?" Makino asked him curiously, and they were all burning with the same question.

Ace proudly folded his arms in his usual smug manner, as if everything was his idea. "I'm Luffy's brother, after all. Someday, I would like to meet the red-haired captain and thank him for everything he did for my little brother."

"Oh, so that's it," Robin smiled.

"Boy, he's really come a long way since the bitter, angry kid we first saw," Sanji said. And he wasn't the only one who thought that. Makino was looking surprised but was now smiling widely at him. As if she could see that he was becoming a different person.

"Why are you looking at me like that!?" he demanded, his cheeks a bright red color, when he noticed the look.

Makino only laughed at the look on his face as she said, "I'm sorry. I'll teach you."

"I think he likes her, Yohoho," Brook laughed.

"How can anyone not like her?" Sanji demanded, whispered softly, "Oh, my love… how I wish you can know my feelings…"

"It's funny," Chopper said, "It's like Ace doesn't even realize that he's changed so much."

"Oh, I doubt that he has realized it," Robin laughed, her hand on the doctor's shoulder. "That is often the case. The best kind of changes always happen gradually, and usually turn out better than if we try to force it. Look at him… he doesn't even realize how different he's acting."

"Is that really how it works?" Chopper asked in surprise.

"Yes," she answered cheerfully, "After all, I'm living proof of that."

Ace grinned back at her, glad that she wasn't laughing anymore, just as Luffy came running over to see what they were talking about.

"What're you guys doing?" he asked, smiling brightly at them both.

Makino beamed back and answered, "Ace-san here wants lessons on how to greet someone."

"Manner lessons," Sanji said fondly, "I'm guessing that Luffy didn't sit through them."

"Lessons on greeting someone?" Luffy repeated confused.

Makino chuckled. "Let's start our first lesson now about how to express gratitude," she offered, sitting back.

"Ok," Ace said eagerly as Luffy sat down to watch.

"So I guess we have Makino to thank for the Ace we met in Alabasta," Usopp said cheerfully, wondering how these 'lessons' were going to go. "Now it all makes sense."

"I think she and Luffy are good influences on him," Franky laughed. "Boy… they do have that effect on people don't they?"

"Alright," she said clapping her hands together. "Let's get today's lesson started!"

"This I can't wait to see," Sanji said, watching them eagerly. "I hope Makino's patient… this might take awhile."

Ace bowed his head low and said, "Pleased to be working with ya."

"That was great Ace!" Luffy said next to him as Ace grinned.

"No, it wasn't, that was rude," Nami said shaking her head.

"Wrong," Makino said, unknowingly agreeing with her. "In times like this you should say, _'I'm pleased to be working with you'_."

"What? He got it wrong?" Luffy asked in surprise. "The way he said it sounded cool though."

"Please, Makino-san, teach Luffy too!" Sanji begged.

She merely smiled and answered, "Someday, Ace-kun wants to meet the red-haired captain you're indebted to. We started these lessons because he wants to learn how to greet him properly."

"You mean Shanks?" Luffy asked in surprise.

"Yeah," Ace said, his hands at his sides and a grin still there. "By the time I meet Shanks, I'll be a pirate myself. As a pirate, and as your brother, it's an obvious duty to show him respect."

"That is true," Brook agreed, thinking it over, "I too look forward to the day I meet him so that I could thank him as well."

"Now," Makino said, bringing them back to the lesson. "Try to imagine that he's right here in front of you."

Ace frowned a little, clearly imagining hard as he said forcefully, "I'm Ace. Who the hell are you?"

"Wrong," Nami said as Brook laughed.

Makino crossed her fingers and made a buzzing sound, signaling that was wrong. "That's no good," she said good-naturedly, "'Who the hell' is too rude."

"She has perfect manners! That is why we're made for each other," Sanji sighed happily, staring at her.

Luffy stood up. "It's 'Who're you?!' right?"

Ace tried again, "Who might you be?"

Again Makino crossed her fingers and made the buzzing sound.

"Better, but still," Sanji sighed, shaking his head. "It's 'It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Ace, and you are?'."

"It's 'Who are you, you bastard?' right?" Luffy offered helpfully.

"Luffy's really not helping," Usopp laughed.

"Who are you supposed to be?" Ace tried again.

Again with the buzz.

"Who is this?" he tried.

Again he got it wrong.

"It's 'who is that?' right?" Luffy asked, running out of ways to greet someone rudely.

"This is ridiculous," Nami sighed, but she couldn't help but laugh. And this time Makino laughed as well. "All wrong," she said. "Are you even _trying_?"

"Oh, I'm sure he is," Robin said contentedly, "It's just that he's used to living with bandits, hunting for food, and stealing. No one's ever told him otherwise. He's learning everything for the first time."

Ace turned to Luffy and snapped at him, trying to vent some of his frustration, "This is all because you're talking nonsense! Go away!"

"Well, he's not helping," Usopp grinned as Chopper giggled to himself, "But you're the one who's getting it wrong, Ace."

"If only I was there," Sanji said, "I'd have gotten them learning manners quicker than blinking. After all, I'm the soul of a refined man."

"A damned soul perhaps," Zoro stated.

"What was that Moss-head?!" Sanji demanded, turning around and marching over to him.

"A damned soul…" he repeated slowly and clearly.

"I hope you die a painful death someday!" Sanji yelled.

"Now was that something a 'refined soul' would've said?" he asked grinning.

"I am refined when it comes to the ladies," he said tenaciously.

"Oh right!" Luffy cried out, interrupting their fight. The look on his face was of pleasant surprise, as if remembering something and stated excitedly, "Hey, Ace, yesterday, I found this nest of a giant snake, filled with huge eggs! Let's go and get them now!"

"Huh?" Ace asked excitedly, suddenly looking hungry, "Huge eggs?" For a moment, he looked as if he was going to run off and get them, but he suddenly shook his head. "No, I can't!" he said frowning.

Luffy looked confused and Ace explained, "I'm studying on how to greet people!"

"But I'll be in trouble if the huge snake catches me there by myself," Luffy whined, tugging on Ace's arm to follow him. "But I'll be fine if you're with me, so come on!"

"Never stop him from doing something stupid before," Nami muttered, but she was still oddly touched by what Luffy said.

"But I guess this shows just how much he trusted Ace," Robin said, understanding what Nami was feeling. "I think it's clear that Luffy truly feels safe with him."

Robin's heart suddenly went out to her captain. She could only imagine just what it must've been like for him two years ago—that feeling of safety being destroyed. She, too, often wondered what it would feel like to feel safe again.

It faded out.

The memories after that were mostly quick scenes they saw Luffy and Ace running wild through the Middle Forest, training with one another in the clearing, and in one they watched as the duo were even able to defeat the bear that had nearly killed Luffy—and to add insult to injury—they made him into a stew. But as the Straw Hats watched, they noticed that the boys were working hard on staying away from the Gray Terminal and Goa. But through the flickering memories, they soon saw that they had been right. It had only been a few months since the fire and the Gray Terminal was soon back to normal as if the fire had never happened and new residences were now living there just as it had been before.

Seeing it made them all furious again… it was like spitting in the faces of all the people who had died here.

"You know?" Zoro said suddenly, his eye narrowed in disgust. "Once we're done sailing the Grand Line, I say we come back and give the bastard nobles here something to really be scared of."

"I love that idea," Nami agreed bitterly, "Something to look forward to after we make it through the New World. This will all be a piece of cake…"

The latest memory was one where Ace came running in to save Luffy after the latter got himself stuck in the mouth of a giant centipede. After using the staff to stab the beast's belly, it dropped Luffy, who pulled himself free of the pincers.

"Hold still!" Ace commanded as the giant bug lay dead on the ground and he was now treating a nasty gash on Luffy's arm.

"Oww! It hurts! Ace!" Luffy cried as Ace spread a thick paste-like substance on his arm, "It stings! Please stop!"

"He needs to get it wrapped up!" Chopper said firmly, "If he's not careful, it could get infected."

"I'm gonna make sure it hurts if you keep complaining, Luffy!" Ace snapped.

"But it hurts!" Luffy whined, rubbing his eyes.

"This coming from the same kid who gets his face turned to mush every time they fight?" Nami asked with sweatdrop. "I don't get it."

Ace sighed. "Big baby, don't you wanna get better?" he muttered, though here he sounded more fond than annoyed, as Luffy sniffed loudly.

"I often wonder that," Franky muttered to himself.

"There. All done," he said, finishing wrapping up the arm. "Don't make that face," he said, almost stern, but his mouth was twitching as well. As soon as Luffy stopped crying and looked at his arm, he broke into a big smile, his tears and all memory of pain now gone.

"Ace was so cool! You beat that giant bug! You're awesome!" Luffy cried out excitedly.

"Well, I see that he's feeling better," Nami sighed. Really, what was with this guy? One minute he's crying and in pain, the next he's happy like it never even happened. She just didn't get him.

Ace blushed a little as he muttered, "You idiot…"

But he was grinning the whole time as Luffy went running off to stare at the giant centipede. "Wow," he said in awe. "I've never seen one this big!" He picked up a stick and was poking at it curiously, with Ace yelling at him to stop it.

"You know, once granddad left me in the jungle and I ate things like this all the time!" he said eagerly, "Only they were a lot smaller…"

"I remember that," Usopp winced, thinking of the first memory they saw when they arrived here and how Garp came marching through the jungle to find him. He felt sick to his stomach at the thought of having to resort to eating bugs to stave off starvation.

"These things are poisonous!" Ace sighed, "We can't eat it! Look, we'll go hunting for a boar or gator later for dinner. Don't be such a baby."

"Oh yeah? Who's the baby now, scared of a big bug?" Luffy teased.

"Ah… brothers…" Brook said affectionately, "they warm my soul, Yohohoho."

"_Who're _you calling a baby?!" Ace demanded.

"Ace is a baby, Ace is a – whoah!" Luffy sang out as Ace tried to tackle him and they began a chase around the clearing.

"They're so cute," Robin smiled, "I just wanna hug one of them."

"Damn," Sanji hissed softly, falling to the ground in depression, "Again, what do kids have that I don't? I'm cute!"

"I wish I had brothers," Chopper sighed, watching them run and laugh together.

As they laughed at the two, Ace sat down and watched as Luffy suddenly spotted a few large beetles underneath a tree. Ace suddenly said, "Listen up Luffy, there's something we need to talk about."

"Look Ace! It's an Atlas!" Luffy said, ignoring his brother's statement and holding the bug up.

"Would you pay attention for longer than three seconds?" Ace demanded, giving him a bonk on the head, while fighting a smile.

"That's what I wish," Nami nodded. Luffy's short attention span was the bane of her existence.

Ace sighed. "Listen Luffy, I've been doing some thinking," he started once again, finally getting the boy's attention. "And I think I've been setting a bad example for you with the way we're always stealing food."

"So he finally gets it," Nami said pleasantly surprised, but pleased.

"What about it?" Luffy asked, frowning at him as he rubbed his sore head. "You said that we need to eat and those Nobles always waste anything that they don't think is good."

"Just another reason to hate them," Sanji growled, how dare these rats waste food like that?

"Well, it's rude." Ace said thinking it over, "At least that's what Makino says."

"It's rude _and_ illegal," Brook laughed.

Luffy blinked at him and lowered his head, "But we don't have any money… and the food in High Town is expensive. We usually just hunt for dinner."

"True," Ace said proudly, "And it's good for us… we can survive on our own. I mean, even you can catch a croc by yourself now. But we're not going to just steal the food anymore."

"Really?" Nami said impressed, "Ace really has changed."

"I don't get it Ace, if we're not gonna steal the food and we don't have any money than what will we do?" Luffy asked as he followed Ace.

"You'll see…" he grinned before he whispered softly into his ear and Luffy's eyes widened. "Like what Makino says?" he asked him.

"Yeah," Ace said grinning. "Just follow my lead."

"What are they going to do?" Usopp asked, not sure he liked that evil grin. But Luffy seemed to be on board with whatever Ace said and he jumped up as the two of them went running off in the direction of Goa. The Straw Hats didn't say much as they followed them, all of them silently wondering just what they were about to see. They followed them through the mounds of junk in the Terminal, before they went running through the gate that led to the back streets in Edge Town. Sneaking into High Town was no problem for these two. The Straw Hats glared around at the nobles, each one all going about their lives as if they had nothing to be guilty about.

"It's been awhile," Luffy said, looking around at the clean streets.

"Yeah, it's hard to believe that it's already been almost a year since the fire," Ace agreed, "But it's good that we stay away from this place for even that long."

"A year?" Chopper whispered in amazement.

"Time flies," Brook sighed. "It's already been a year for them, but we just finished watching such a horrific scene and are still coming to terms with it."

As they walked through the town, the nobles gave the boys disgusted looks, some of them covering their mouths and noses as they moved away; as if they smelled like the same garbage they threw away.

"I didn't need a reminder to what I hated about these guys," Franky spat as he glared at the nobles, daring them to come closer.

Once, as they were passing an old man walking some froufrou dog dressed in ridiculous clothes, stop to stare intently at Luffy—as if trying to remember where he'd seen him before. Ace managed to suppress a growl that threatened to escape through his throat as he glared at the man threateningly. "What are you looking at?" he demanded, sounding more like a protective brother.

"Oh nothing," the man said jumping back, away from Ace. "It's just that I feel like I've seen this boy before… and you too now that I think of it…"

"You think he would recognize the kids who once terrorized this place," Usopp said as Ace grabbed Luffy's arm and pulled him along, looking politely confused, away from the man.

"They have their heads so far up their asses that they don't notice anything," Sanji said.

The scene faded after that, but almost immediately, it appeared again, standing exactly where they had been standing before. For a second, they thought that they were still in the same memory… at least until they heard someone shouting, "They just ate and ran! Someone stop them!" Ace and Luffy had come running towards them from up the road, a chief chasing after them, screaming at them to stop running and pay for their meal.

"Wait, I thought that Ace said that they weren't going to steal food anymore?" Nami said, thinking it over.

But as they got closer, Ace blinked, as if remembering the same thing. "Oh, right. We're being rude here!"

"You think?" Usopp asked, smacking his own forehead at that.

"Right," Luffy said and they stopped running to look at the man. He looked briefly surprised, apparently wondering if they were going to pay up. But instead, they just bowed and called out, "Thanks for the meal!"

The Straw Hats couldn't help but laugh here.

"Shut up you damn kids!" the chief yelled. "Just pay the bill!"

"I love that," Usopp laughed. "Now I get where Luffy does his eat-and-run stunts all the time."

"Ace is still a bad influence," Nami sighed, but then again she was hardly one to talk about stealing things that didn't belong to her.

"Oh, they deserve it anyway," Zoro smirked as the memories shifted again. But the next one they heard it before they saw anything.

"MORONS!" thundered a familiar voice. There was Garp, fuming as he yelled at both of his grandsons, who stood there in front of him, all of them back in the forest.

"After these last few months of working tirelessly for the Marines, I finally get a chance to visit my grandsons, and what do I find? You brats were causing trouble!" Garp hollered at them.

"I hope the food was worth it," Zoro said, as the boys faced him, looking terrified, but unremorseful.

"I'm not going to let my grandsons to be some such low thieves!" Garp yelled, "You're going to be honest Marines!"

"Is he still going on about that?" Sanji asked exasperated, "You think he'd have given up by now."

"I'm guessing that stubbornness is in the family," Nami sighed, glancing at Luffy.

"What was that?" Ace demanded. "Oh, I do plan on leaving this wretched kingdom behind when I go out to sea alright, but not as a Marine!"

"Brave man," Zoro said shaking his head.

"You imbecile!" Garp yelled, punching Ace hard enough to knock him down.

"Ace!" Luffy called, going to his brother's side at once.

"What're you doing Gramps?" Ace demanded hotly.

"I thought that was obvious," Usopp gulped down. "I've been saying it from the start. He's trying to kill you two."

"What do you mean, going out to sea?" Garp bellowed out. "I'll never let you!"

"Again, I feel for him," Sanji said sweating at the thought, "All that hard work only for his grandsons to become world famous criminals. But what can you do?"

Ace looked away, rubbing the bruise on his cheek, "You're not my father! So quite acting all high and mighty! Why should I listen to you old man?"

"Call me 'granddad'!" Garp snapped.

"Like you deserve it?" Nami asked sweatdropped.

"Old man," Ace retorted.

"He's really asking for it now," Zoro muttered. Really, were they _trying_ to get on Garp's bad side?

Garp held up his fist. "You want another taste of my Fist of Love?" he threatened.

"If that's love, I ever wanna find it," Usopp whispered with Chopper nodding fearfully next to him.

"He's scaring me," Chopper whined.

"Granddad!" Luffy said, standing up and glaring at him, "I'm gonna get much stronger and then set out to sea with Ace!"

"Does he want to die?" Brook cried out. Garp then punched Luffy hard in the head so that his forehead swelled up and he was crying again. At once Ace stood up and stood protectively in front of Luffy, standing between him and Garp.

"You idiot!" Garp yelled at Luffy, "You too?!"

"Don't hit Luffy, you damn old geezer!" Ace yelled at him.

"ACE HOW DARE YOU!" Garp yelled furiously.

Nami sighed as the darkness came back and blocked the vision from them. "Just watching the three of them makes me feel like I'm losing my mind. I don't know how much more of them I can take."

"Those three just seem to bring the worst in each other," Robin said smiling until they were suddenly standing near a small campfire with Luffy, Ace, and Garp piling food into their mouths.

"Listen up!" Garp called to them both, swallowing a mouthful of food. "You never know when you'll be called into battle! So when you eat, you have to eat as much as you can! This is another important part of being a Marine. Remember it well, you two!"

"So _he_ was the one who taught Luffy that," Sanji demanded hotly, feeling the urge to hit Garp. "I should've known. Does he realize how difficult he made my life because of that?"

Ace, who finished pulling out a fish skeleton from his mouth, demanded, "What do you mean 'Marine'? That's not for you to decide!"

"He's got a point," Brook said nodding along with Ace, "Trying to control a child's life never works out." He fell silent for a moment before he thought to himself, _'Look at what happened to Sabo because his parents tried to control his life.'_

"What?" Garp yelled.

"I'm gonna be a pirate!" Ace challenged him, no longer paying attention as Luffy started stuffing his face with more and more food.

"No!" Garp yelled back, "You're gonna be a Marine!"

And so they began arguing back and forth between Marines and Pirates.

"They might want to start paying attention," Robin said happily as Luffy inhaled the food.

"How does he do that?" Chopper asked in amazement as Luffy leaned back happily, having finished putting away all the food that was there into his mouth and swallowing it whole.

"He has a bottomless stomach, there's no other explanation," Sanji whispered. "He's not normal, even by these standards."

"Delicious!" Luffy called, patting his belly as the other two finally looked down and their jaws dropped in horror and the Straw Hats all burst out laughing at the looks on their faces.

"That's why you can never let your guard down when you're having a meal with him," Sanji sighed, having put up giant mousetraps in the past to keep Luffy from the fridge. "Hopefully, they learn this…"

"That was good!" Luffy said happily, falling back and going to sleep. As the other two sat down on either side of him, Luffy whispered in his sleep, "I wanna be a pirate."

"Oh, this is just rich," Franky roared with laughter as Ace and Garp looked at him.

Suddenly, Ace smirked, "If Luffy _did_ become a Marine, he'd eat all the provisions in one day."

"And that's how long it would take him to eat everything on our ship too if I didn't guard it," Sanji hissed.

Garp looked at him and burst out laughing. "He might be more dangerous than the enemy pirates!"

"You have no idea," Zoro laughed as the darkness faded. The memories were coming much more quickly now. This time when they came back, it was still dark. They were now inside the small room where the brothers used to stay in at Dadan's before they left. Luffy was dozing underneath one of the blankets apparently waiting for Ace as he drew a bunch of squiggles on a piece of paper. Luffy looked to be much older than he had been in the previous memories… perhaps ten or even eleven now… but he still had that sweet, innocent expression on his face as he drew.

"What's happening now?" Usopp asked, looking over to see one of the atrocious drawings that only Luffy could do. For about five minutes, nothing else seemed to happen, and Zoro, growing bored, went out to try and find something more interesting to watch.

"Zoro!" Nami called after him as he headed to the door.

"Quiet!" he called back in annoyance, "I think I hear them all talking here!"

He walked through the wall to see that Garp was there, sharing a heavy drink with Dadan.

"You think that a grandfather would at least _try_ to visit his grandsons more than just a few times a year," Dadan spoke to him gruffly.

"I do try. But I'm surprised here. I don't hear you complaining about them as usual," Garp told her as he drank more Sake, making Zoro's mouth water.

"I don't mind it so much anymore," Dadan confessed. "That Ace certainly has changed since you brought that second monster here. If you had told me back then that he would be like this now, I'd have said that you were drinking too much. I didn't see any hope for him."

"That is good to hear," Garp confessed. "To be honest, even I was starting to grow worried about him."

"What's going on, Zoro?" Usopp asked, as the other Straw Hats came to his side.

He didn't answer as he watched the two sit there. Suddenly, Garp reached into his front shirt and pulled out a wrinkled sheet of paper. "The reason I came here tonight was so that I could show you this. I think, you might find this interesting."

"What's this?" she asked in annoyance, taking the sheet from him and looking over it before staring at it with wide eyes. "So this is…?"

"Just the latest wanted poster issue from the World Government," Garp said softly. "He may not be a pirate, but he's just jumped up to the top of their _most wanted_ list. In fact, did you hear what they're calling him? The 'Most Wanted Man in the World'."

"You mean…?" Chopper said softly, suddenly realizing who the man in the picture had to be.

"Luffy's father," Robin said, thinking of Dragon.

"So…" Dadan said, giving the paper back to Garp. "Dragon's officially on the top of the Government's hit list?"

"Ha! Right now he _is_ the list," Garp sighed with a bitter laugh. "But I say good luck trying to track him down. Already, they consider him the biggest demon to have ever lived since Roger. The World Government thought that the era of pirates would end with Roger's death, but in the end it backfired on them. Now Dragon's causing trouble in the world. The World Nobles have already demanded that we use all our resources to hunt him down. HA! As if it would be _that_ easy! It's almost impossible to find that man if he doesn't want to be found." He leaned back against the wall and said, "If they can figure out how to catch the wind… then maybe they have a chance."

'_Well said,'_ Robin thought to herself. Yes, Dragon was very much like the wind itself… here one minute, and gone the next.

"I still can't believe that's _your_ kid they want dead," Dadan snapped. "On second thought, I _can_ believe it. I guess we know whose side that Dragon takes after." She stared at her bottle of Sake before she said, "And I guess that makes him…?"

"Luffy's father," Garp nodded. "He may not act like it, but I already see a lot of Dragon in him."

"So now it's like with Ace," Dadan asked, "If the government finds out about Luffy's birth?"

"They would never let them live," Robin answered knowingly.

"Could they really want them both dead just because of their fathers?" Chopper asked her.

"Of course they would," Robin answered grimly. "As far as they're concerned, those two were 'born evil' just because of their fathers. To the government… they were never supposed to exist. The fact that they're alive is considered nothing but a sin to them."

"That's a load of crap," Franky said, glancing at her. "You once believe that you didn't deserve to live… that your own existence was a sin… don't you remember what I said to you?"

Robin gave him a sad smile, remembering the ride to Enies Lobby. "That being alive… just existing… can't be a sin."

"Truer words never spoken," Usopp said, all of them looking at Robin with fierce determination. Franky was right. It wasn't the government's place to decide if someone should be allowed to live or not. If they were never supposed to exist, then why were they ever born at all? The Marines were just using this as an excuse for their murderous habits.

"They'll hunt him down," Garp sighed, throwing the empty bottle over his head and reaching for another one. "Believe me, it wasn't easy keeping this secret at HQ. It's the main reason why I want them both to become Marines! If word ever got out…"

"It wouldn't matter though will it?" Dadan asked him, "We both know that all the Government needs is proof and they'll kill them both! You don't honestly think that they'll let this go simply because they join the Marines do you?"

Garp was silent for a moment. "No," he confessed. "But I don't see any other way out of this. Right now, as far as the world is concerned, the two of them are just a couple delinquent orphans. Which they are now that you think of it. But no one could ever imagine otherwise… and I intend to keep it that way."

Dadan sighed. "Boy, of all the children that you had to bring here… the sons of the two most infamous criminals that the world's ever known! Just why did you bring them to me?"

"We've known each other a long time," he grinned at her. "And I know how soft you are on kids."

"SHUT UP!" she barked at him.

"Now, I think I see what he's getting at," Brook laughed. "She really does seem fond of children."

"It's in a woman's nature I guess," Sanji sighed, wondering just what made women care about kids so much…

"I can't begin to guess what's going on in his head however," Brook said, looking at Garp. "This must be so hard on him. He was doing all this to keep them safe, but in the end, it wasn't enough."

"But I agree wholeheartedly with what Dadan said," Robin answered him. "There's no way that they would ever be left alone even if they joined the Marines."

"Hey," Chopper said softly, just realizing something, "How are we seeing this when Luffy's not even here?"

They all glanced at each other, slightly surprised by the question.

"Just because Luffy doesn't remember doesn't mean that it didn't happen?" Zoro offered, though not even he knew what he was saying. Luffy was right in the other room, but just because he didn't hear what they were saying didn't mean that this conversation never happened. Perhaps Luffy could vaguely hear their voices but not make out anything? He didn't know. All he did know was that the truth of Dragon seemed to be a big shock to him when he did find out about it at Water 7.

"You gonna tell Luffy?" Dadan asked suddenly. "About his father?"

"Right," Garp said, rolling his eyes, "And how do I tell a kid this? Not even Ace was supposed to know about his father and I still don't know how he found out about it. Plus, it doesn't help that Luffy has a big mouth. No, it's easier if we keep this quiet from everyone else."

"That makes a lot of sense," Nami sighed. Yes, she couldn't blame Garp a bit for keeping this quiet.

Dadan finished her drink as she cleaned her mouth. "You leaving for the Marines tomorrow again?" she demanded. "That Ace is already almost thirteen now you know."

"Time flies," Franky whistled out, repeating what Brook said before.

Garp laughed. "Right… but I'm afraid that Navy HQ can't do anything on their own. I have to stay with them little longer, though I often wonder if it's worth it." He raised his eyebrows at her and asked, "You won't tell anyone about this will you?"

"About Dragon?" she asked irritably. "Why should I care about who their fathers are? It's no business of mine."

"You know, I think my respect for her just went up a notch just for saying that," Franky smiled. But soon afterwards, the two adults passed out where they laid; their faces red from all the drinking.

Nami sighed. "Honestly, I don't understand them."

But as they were about to head to the back room, they heard another door open and Ace stepped in. He was certainly much older, though still young, he was quickly leaving his preteen body behind and looked more mature than they had last saw him. There was a towel over his shoulders and he already had his signature orange hat on his head.

Judging from the wet hair and towel, they guessed the he had just taken a bath… but his eyes were emotionless as he slowly stepped into the room, staring at them both on the floor—looking completely lost in thought. Sanji's one revealed eye suddenly widen and he said, "Wait… you don't think he heard what they were saying about Dragon do you?"

"Most likely," Zoro commented as he watched Ace slowly walk to the back room where Luffy was. "If he was outside that door, I don't see how he couldn't…"

Quickly following Ace, they walked to the back room where Luffy was already half asleep. Ace sat down next to him, just watching him with an unreadable expression on his face.

"Is he going to be ok?" Chopper asked, staring at Ace's empty expression.

"It's just a shock for him," Robin said softly. "All this time, neither one of them had any idea… but he just realized that he and Luffy are in the same situation. The only difference is that Luffy has no idea."

Luffy was almost completely out of it now, the memory darkened a little more. But Ace stared down at him and said softly, "It's taken you a long time to be able to look at fire without having nightmares hasn't it?"

"Huh?" Luffy croaked out, looking up at him sleepily. "Why bring that up?"

"Just thinking," Ace answered. "But you still have nightmares sometimes I notice…"

"He had nightmares about the fire?" Nami said softly. "Even after all this time?"

"I can't say I'm surprised," Robin sighed, knowing that trauma often took years to heal… she had only just begun to recover from the horror of the Buster Call after all. "Something like that would be hard to get over."

Luffy turned on his side, his back to Ace, as if ashamed. "Only once in awhile," he confessed. "But they're not as bad as they used to be. I mean, it's just big fires that I don't like. But I'm ok with it… really."

Ace smirked a little as Luffy yawned and shut his eyes, fading out.

"You haven't changed," he said smiling as the memory began to fade. Ace laid down and gently wrapped a protective arm around Luffy's neck, hugging him close. A small, contented smile appeared on Luffy's mouth as everything went dark… as if he felt safe with Ace there shielding him from any nightmares.

"Man, that really is something special," Brook said softly. "I only wish I had a chance to meet Ace-san in person."

"I think he's really starting to see how much he and Luffy are alike," Nami said smiling, jealous at how two people could be so close

"Wait!" Usopp said suddenly, "You mean that Ace knew all along who Luffy's father was?"

"It would appear so," Robin answered. "If he was listening in at the door…?"

"But then why didn't he ever tell him?" Usopp asked confused. "You think he would if they were that close and everything…?"

"You think he'd do something like that?" Sanji demanded harshly, "He knew better than anyone to be considered the child of a demon. For years he'd been tormented with the belief that he was never supposed to be born! That the world would've been happier if he wasn't around! You think he'd push something like that on his little brother?"

"He just had another reason to protect him," Zoro said, sighing as he tilted his head back, gazing up at the endless sea of darkness. "It doesn't matter who Luffy's father is."

No one said anything to that for a long time as they continued to watch memories flying by. The boys both grew older and continued to grow stronger while living in the forest. They'd go into the trees to hunt and train for days on end before they came back for some rest before running off again. The seasons came and went and things continued to change around them. But nothing changed more than Ace… the angry child was no more and a patient and more polite young man was emerging.

Luffy remained the same personality wise, but the stronger he got, the less he cried. He was growing confident in his abilities, and even Ace had stopped mocking his powers once he finally learned to throw a decent punch…

Though he was still known to tease him for it to make him angry.

But that soon changed one time when they were watching the two running from guards in Goa after they pulled another dine-and-dash. Ace looked to be about fifteen here and Luffy couldn't have been more than twelve.

"You know, one of these days they're going to get into some really serious trouble because of this!" Nami called, running with them, now tired of all the constant running they'd done since coming here.

The words were no sooner said when one of the guards held up their rifle and pointed it at the boy's retreating backs.

"Hold on! Isn't that a bit extreme?!" Usopp yelled out as Chopper screamed. "They're only kids here!"

"I guess there's only so much you can take from someone before they snap," Sanji hollered.

"Why should they worry?" Zoro asked, "Luffy's immune to bullets!"

Suddenly, the gun fired and the bullet nailed Luffy right in the back. Ace, next to him stopped dead and stared in horror as Luffy's eyes widen in stunned surprise before he fell.

"LUFFY!" Ace screamed as Luffy's body slowly fell forward, but then he stopped himself as the skin stretched out and the bullet bounced back towards the guards.

"What the hell just happened?" one of the guards screamed out, dropping the gun as he watched the bulled go flying off.

"You think that they've never seen a bullet bounce off a rubber person before," Franky commented.

"I think they just discovered that," Robin said, watching at how Ace caught Luffy, panic now setting into his eyes as he looked around desperately—much like how he did when Luffy had been attacked by that bear. The guards behind them were also freaking out, having no idea to what happened, and Ace used their confusion to make a quick escape. He dragged Luffy off with him, quickly getting out of High Town, and ducked down an alleyway back into Edge Town so that he could examine Luffy.

"Luffy!" Ace gasped, setting Luffy down on the ground. "Are you hurt?"

Luffy seemed to come out of his stunned shock and sat up so suddenly that Ace's jaw fell open. Luffy gave his body a pat down. "NO," he said, eyes wide. "I'm ok?"

"LIAR!" Ace yelled at him, forcing him to turn around so that he could see, "I SAW YOU GET SHOT!"

But as Ace pulled the shirt up so that they could see his back… there wasn't anything there. Perhaps a slight bruise in the shape of a perfect circle… but nothing else.

Ace's eyes suddenly widen. "I get it! It makes sense! If blunt attacks don't work on you, then it makes sense that a bullet can't do anything!"

"Finally, he gets it," Zoro said.

"Well, they never been shot at before so they never had a chance to find out till now," Brook pointed out.

"Lucky thing too, otherwise, Luffy be dead," Robin offered.

"Why must you love that morbid imagination of yours, Robin?" Usopp moaned out.

"So I'm bulletproof?" Luffy asked, his eyes shining at the thought, "That's so cool!"

Ace just sighed as he bonked him on the head. "DON'T DO THAT AGAIN!"

On they watched as the boys continued to change and grow up in the future memories. They both became tall and lanky, completed with messy black hair and wide eyes—both were big eaters and strong fighters. It was near impossible for anyone not to recognize them as brothers. It warmed the Straw Hats hearts to see these scenes, yet at the same time in felt like a knife wound with each memory. It only made Ace's death seem that much more tragic.

But finally, the day had come. The day before Ace's seventeenth birthday…

"Happy birthday, Ace!" Luffy cheered, jumping on his back, after they caught another large gator for their dinner.

"That's not until tomorrow runt," he grinned back, grabbing Luffy in a headlock and giving him a noogie.

"So this is gonna be the last night they spend together?" Brook asked them all.

"So you really leaving tomorrow?" Luffy asked excitedly, asking the same question.

"Yep," Ace grinned back.

"Then I'll enjoy this last birthday with you," Luffy said contentedly.

"He's taking his big brother leaving very well," Sanji said in mild surprise.

"Oh, he's glad that Ace is finally ready to leave," Robin smiled sadly, "But I can tell that he's already starting to miss him."

"But he hasn't even left yet," Chopper pointed out.

"Just the idea that soon his brother will be going out into the world without him is making him sad," she explained. "Since they became brothers they've always been together and now, for the first time since then, they'll be separated. Ace will be going off into the world on his own. Luffy still has to wait another three years before he's seventeen."

The two were sitting inside a fort in front of Dadan's house, only this time, the two old huts had been put together to make one. They were sitting up enjoying their dinner as they gazed up at the sky, Ace pointing out the names of several stars as Luffy watched in amazement. It was funny how the littlest thing seemed to make Luffy smile like a child for hours.

The night was asleep, snoring lightly as her darkened skies allowed veiled clouds to pass by, occasionally blocking the moon and its stars. Yet, as if in retaliation, they seemed to gleam more brightly, as if to spite the clouds.

"Ace?" Luffy suddenly said as he finished another leg of meat.

"Hmm?" Ace asked looking at him.

"I… no, it's nothing," Luffy said smiling. "Forget it."

"Ok, now I know that something's wrong," Usopp said, "He's never been like that before."

"He's hiding something," Franky said at once.

Ace obviously sensed this as well as he looked at him with a mixture of concern and disbelief. "I think that's the first time I'd ever heard that before," he said with a small smile tweaking his features. "What's bothering you?"

"Nothing!" Luffy said at once, "It's not important!"

Ace raised his eyebrows. "My little brother keeping secrets from me already?" he murmured, half to Luffy, half to himself. "Come on… I know you better than that. Tell me what's wrong." He lightly prodded Luffy on the back. "Or do I have to wrestle the answer out of you?"

"_No_!" Luffy yelled happily, an evil grin appearing.

"That's it! This means war!" Ace cried out and suddenly they were fighting again… probably for the last time. Luffy leaped out of the way and immediately retaliated, grinning wildly, not willing to forfeit this fight. Several thumps and crashes banged throughout the tiny house, shaking it thoroughly like a leaf. Laughter rang out, loud and clear.

"Don't they do anything but fight?" Usopp asked exasperated.

"That's what brothers do best," Zoro answered.

Finally, the sounds of fighting stopped. They lay there, stretched out on the ground, breathless and slightly bruised from their momentary fistfight. "Damn, that was a good punch," Ace chuckled, rubbing his cheek. "Not a knock-out but hey… you've gotten better."

Luffy grinned as he laughed to himself.

"It's almost like they're still little kids," Nami said watching them laugh with each other. "It's been a long time since I've seen Luffy like this."

"Hey, Luffy?" Ace suddenly said, sitting up.

"Yeah?" Luffy asked, mimicking his every movement.

Ace paused, as if trying to find the right words to say. "Take care of yourself for me, all right? While I'm gone?"

The Straw Hats looked at Ace… he wasn't looking at his brother as he stared ahead of him at the sky… lost in thought. It was strange to see the usually confident, smug look was now clouded with… was it hesitation?

Robin smiled. She could tell that this separation was hard on Luffy, it could only be even harder for Ace. For years, his one purpose was to protect his little brother, but now he would be going on to find a new life for himself. He would be leaving his brother here… though Luffy was now strong enough that he could handle the monsters in the forest and the thugs in town by himself. Ace was still worried.

She knew that the idea of finally leaving this island behind and becoming a pirate and heading out on adventures was irresistible to him, but the idea of leaving his brother alone was a difficult thing for him to do. But she also knew that this had to happen. Ace was finally ready to step out into the world and Luffy needed to wait a little longer before he would be ready.

"It's not like we won't see each other again," Luffy said gleefully, "And when we do, _I'll_ be a pirate too!"

Ace laughed. "Yeah, you will. But still… I can't help but worry. So promise me that you'll take care of yourself for me? I'm not worried about leaving you here alone. You can pretty much take care of yourself here. But when you do set out… it'll be like starting over from scratch."

"Don't worry!" Luffy said eagerly, giggling to himself. "I'll be a lot stronger in three more years! And once I leave here, I'll find a pirate crew! I want… maybe ten guys! Yeah, ten'll be good! Then we'll set sail for the Grand Line!"

"Ten?" Nami repeated, "Where'd he come up with that number?"

"Yeah, when we finally set off for the Grand Line from the East Blue, there were only five of us," Sanji said, thinking back.

"Only five in a crew heading to the Grand Line?" Brook said in surprise. "My that's practically unheard of!"

"You want ten crewmates?" Ace asked smiling. "You sure that's all you need? After all, a crew is gonna need more than just a captain."

"Like what?" Luffy asked, as if he never thought of that.

"Like a doctor, navigator, a few swordsmen is always a good idea," Ace listed off.

"You got that right," Zoro said as Brook laughed.

"Oh, I know!" Luffy said, thinking it over. "A musician!"

"Yeah, he had been asking for a musician since I joined," Nami said thinking it over. "Funny that the one he wanted most took so long to join."

"Luffy can be surprisingly picky when he wants to be," Usopp said, thinking it over.

"Luffy-san, I'm so touched!" Brook said tearfully, glad that out of all the musicians in the world, he wanted him to be part of his crew.

Ace laughed. "Well, I think you get the idea. I'll tell you what. Once you get your first bounty, I'll come and meet up with you and your crew."

"And you'll join?" Luffy asked excitedly.

"Are you kidding me?" Ace asked, rolling his eyes and Luffy looked away disappointed. The Straw Hats laughed. It was too much like how they were always arguing before that they couldn't help themselves.

"But you'll get to meet my crew when I find them?" Luffy asked him, as if making sure that he wouldn't go back on his promise.

"Only if you promise me that you'll look after yourself till then," Ace said strictly.

"Ok!" Luffy said beaming. "Sounds fair. It's a promise!"

"Good," Ace said, before he suddenly shoved Luffy's head down into the dirt and started another fight.

"So that's why we met up with him in Alabasta?" Chopper asked.

"I think he wanted to see what kind of people would be crazy enough to follow Luffy," Sanji smirked. "I often wonder that myself…?"

It was the next morning when the next memory came and now they were standing near the ocean. Ace was standing in a small fishing boat, finishing packing a sack and swinging it over his shoulder as he looked up at everyone. Luffy, Makino, the bandits, even the mayor were all there to say goodbye.

"Ace!" Luffy called, beaming at him proudly. "Take care of yourself!"

"Looks like Ace is finally setting out," Usopp said, feeling strangely honored that he could see such a special moment.

"Funny how it is now Luffy-san telling his brother to take care of himself," Brook said fondly.

"Well, Ace is leaving," Sanji said smiling sadly. "He's heading off into a world that they know nothing about… he's gonna need it to survive out here."

"Sure!" Ace called happily. "See you later, Luffy! I'll be going on ahead!"

"Right!" Luffy called eagerly. "And when I set out to sea myself in three years, I'll become much stronger!"

"Don't we know it," Usopp said, thinking back.

Ace merely grinned, and it was here that they saw the man they met in Alabasta. This was how it all truly started for him as he shoved off, all of them waving goodbye. "Do your best, Ace!" Luffy called waving joyfully, but still a little sadness in his eyes shown through.

"Take care of yourself!" Dogra called, waving a handkerchief after him.

"Try not to catch cold!" Makino added.

"Still so kind, Makino-san!" Sanji swooned, suddenly reminded of the day that he left the Baratie.

"Just you wait!" Ace declared, "I'll make a name for myself real soon!"

"That he does," Robin said softly, knowing that he would soon become the feared 'Fire-Fist Ace' in only three years.

"There he goes!" Luffy called, grinning as he stared long after his older brother until he was out of sight.

"Really," the mayor said. "How is Garp going to take this?"

"I don't want to be around when he does," Usopp gulped.

"I'm gonna miss him," Makino sighed, "He really has come a long way since I first met him."

"You're telling me," Chopper said, remembering how cold Ace once was. "Hey, wait…" he added looking around. "Dadan's not here."

"I guess she couldn't bring herself to say goodbye," Nami said softly.

Luffy didn't say a word as he went skipping off on his own. After seeing all the memories of him and Ace together, it was a little lonely to see Luffy by himself now. But he was still smiling as he went along the now familiar path to the old fighting ground.

"Only three more years for me," Luffy said to himself, turning to face the giant rock. He then ran forward with a Gum Gum Pistol and ended up taking the top of the giant boulder off.

"He hit it!" Chopper called happily.

"And he's now strong enough to break apart rock with his bare hands," Franky said with a smirk, "About time."

"But his aim still sucks," Zoro pointed out. Luffy seemed to agree as he cursed to himself and frowned at the rock.

He stared ahead, as if imagining something was there.

"Just aim a little bit lower," Usopp said at once.

And as if Luffy heard him, this time when he tried, he ended up hitting the rock dead center and smashing it to pieces. Grinning in pride, he punched the air, loudly declaring to all of Goa, "I'll become stronger! Much stronger!"

And that's how life was for Luffy now that he was on his own. It was hard for him, at first, to train on his own, but he soon got used to it as he went running through the forests, challenging every beast he saw. Only occasionally would he go to Goa… since everyone there knew his face, he couldn't walk the streets without someone crying out and guards coming. But Luffy just laughed as he let the guards chase him, easily slipping through their fingers every time. Now the Straw Hats knew where Luffy learned to become so skillful in escaping from authorities.

They thought that they wouldn't see or hear about Ace again until Luffy set out to sea himself, however that changed. In only a few months since Ace had left, and Luffy was relaxing in the fort when Dogra came running towards him, waving a newspaper around. "Luffy! Luffy! Look at today's paper!"

"What is it?" Luffy asked quickly as he stood up.

"There's only one reason why Dogra would be so excited about a paper," Nami said as Luffy looked at the front page, and sure enough, a large grin appeared.

"Amazing!" he called out, staring at it, beaming with pride. "Ace made a name for himself! This picture shows him with his pirate ship and crew! Amazing! Ace is amazing!"

He dropped the paper as he went running back into the forest.

"Luffy!" Dogra called after him in surprise, "Where are you going?!"

"I'm not gonna lose to him!" he yelled back, and soon they heard a boom and a giant smoke cloud appeared over the trees as if Luffy had just destroyed something big and heavy.

"Look like Ace-san was a big inspiration to him," Brook said softly.

"I noticed that too," Sanji said, looking down at his cigarette. "Shanks was his childhood hero, but it was really Ace that was like a guiding light for him. Even when he wasn't around, he kept Luffy motivated and determined to grow stronger. So that's how he became the Luffy we all knew when we met him."

Usopp sighed, "I'm jealous. I never knew just how close these two were… and that's something really one of a kind. Who knew coming to live here with bandits could shape them into the people we knew?"

"I find the change in Ace simply remarkable as well," Robin stated, looking up at the bright sky before the memory changed again. "Now I understand why you were surprised when we first saw him here. You can hardly tell that it's the same person."

"Without even realizing it, Luffy changed Ace completely," Usopp said smiling.

"By giving Ace something to look out for, he had a reason to live," Robin said to herself softly. She wondered… what would've happened if Ace never had what happened to Sabo happen? Or if he never had such a wild child like Luffy to look after? Would he have become like her? Bitter and angry with the world… never able to find a place? She smiled… yes; her captain had unknowingly saved at least two lives here without even trying. She wished that she could've met Ace…

When the vision came back, they were surprised to be standing in front of the tree where the trio's old hideout was. It looked completely run-down, now covered with a thick layer of moss. It couldn't have been clearer that one had been here for a long time. But Luffy was standing there, gazing up at it.

His back was to them, but when he turned around so that they could see his face, it was a pleasant surprise to see that this was _their_ Luffy. He was much older here than in the last memory… he was now a swinging seventeen-year-old looking just like how he did when they met him two years ago. The only difference was that he wasn't wearing his straw hat… he just didn't look right without it. Nonetheless, there was a bright light shining in his eyes as he turned away from the treehouse and went running through the forest.

"Again with running?" Usopp sighed as they gave chase. But this was different from before. Luffy almost flew along the ground as he ran, jumping over the crocodile pond, lightly landing down cliffs, and the rest of the monsters who lived here seemed to be afraid to go near him as if thinking that he would eat them… which he probably would.

He had certainly come a long way from the little boy who would constantly chase after his big brother. The bright sun was shining and Luffy seemed out of his mind with eagerness.

"Yohoho, he's like the boss of the forest now!" Brook laughed.

"Boss of the island if you ask me," Nami answered, wondering just why got Luffy so happy here. Bursting through the clearing where the bandit's hut was, Luffy stopped by his fort where he picked up a few coins to shove in his pocket and his precious straw hat from a tangle of blankets. Standing back and smiling long and hard at the fort he turned and called to the bandits inside, "Hey! Come on!"

He leaned in the front doorway, so that he could see inside, "I'm going now! Aren't you coming to see me off?"

"So this is where he's finally ready to set off on his own?!" Brook called excitedly.

"Oh, shut up," Dadan said, her back to him. "Makino and the Mayor wouldn't mind. They know us, but we'd scare the other villagers if we came down from the mountain."

"Yeah but…" Luffy started, looking disappointed that they didn't want to come.

"Just get going already!" she snapped.

"Nice way to say goodbye to someone after all they've been through," Usopp muttered to himself.

Luffy sighed. "Oh, well, then guys…" he brightened up, nothing could dampen his mood here, "thanks for everything!"

They all turned red. "Oh, don't embarrass us," Dogra said with an awkward laugh. "No need for thanks!"

"Now, now…" Magra added, rubbing the back of his head as he raised a hand in farewell. "Take care!"

"You know… they aren't so bad after all," Franky said, smiling at them. "I'd love to have a good party with them when we come here to raise hell for the nobles."

"Good idea," Usopp said happily.

Luffy only smiled, "Sure, I will!" he turned to leave before he stuck his head back in one more time, as if he remembered one last thing to complain about. "Oh, right!"

They all stopped as he said, "Dadan, I told you that I hate mountain bandits…"

"Luffy…" Nami sighed, she had hoped that he would at least learn something from Makino's lessons.

"Shut up, you little brat!" Dadan called annoyed.

But Luffy held his hand up, "But I like you guys!"

Dadan gasped a little, and she pulled out a handkerchief from her blouse and began crying. "Don't say dumb things like that, and just get lost, damn you!" the other bandits merely smiled. "Sheesh you guys are all so…"

"Why are you crying?"

"I'm not crying!"

"She's just like you, Franky," Chopper said, as the cyborg started to tear up from the touching scene.

"Oh, shut up! I'm a real man! I never cry!" Franky sobbed out.

Luffy only laughed once more as he went running off, waving goodbye to them all as he raced down the road that he hadn't used since he came to this house the first time. Again, it was exciting to follow him down the pathway that would undoubtedly lead them to the village. The trees grew smaller and spread out farther as they slowly turned to farmlands and soon they could see the familiar windmills in the distance.

It was almost a culture shock to see the village again after all this time as Luffy went running down to the town, calling out to the people there.

And finally, the moment came. The next stage of memories was when they were standing on the same dock that Luffy once stood on to wave goodbye to Shanks and his crew. It was truly coming full circle because this time, it was Luffy setting out on his own. Luffy was in an old rowboat, and putting in a large barrel that was filled with what looked like apples. He had just closed the lid as he started saying goodbye to what looked like the whole town.

"I kinda expected him to pack meat," Zoro said.

"Well, apples would keep a lot longer than meat in this case since you can't cook anything in a tiny boat," Nami said as Luffy turned back to the villagers.

"Hey," one man called to him. "If you're going out to sea, you should take my old fishing boat, Luffy. You'll sink right away if you take that thing."

"A rowing boat?" another said. "Come on…"

"Yeah, I have to agree," Franky said, looking at it. "That thing's gonna sink soon."

"I'm fine with this," Luffy said, shaking holding his arms out wide. "I'll start my journey here! It begins now!"

"Typical he would want to start out with that little bathtub," Nami smiled.

"Shows how far he's come since then," Brook laughed proudly, thinking of the Sunny and how they were now in the New World. "This is truly a wondrous thing to see! So this is how our captain started off! And here we are now!"

Luffy was now facing the sea, and suddenly shouted out, "SABO! Look at me! I'm setting out to sea too!"

"I'm not gonna cry," Usopp said, though tears were filling up. "I'm not gonna cry…"

Luffy had a determined look in his eyes as he whispered to himself, "Sabo was first, Ace was second… and now I'm the third to go. But I won't lose!" He then cried out at the top of his lungs, "Wait for me, Ace! I'll catch up to you soon!"

"What are you doing, Luffy?" a villager asked as the rest of them all looked at each other completely lost. "Shouting and muttering to yourself like that. Is it some good luck charm?"

"That's not it," he answered, turning back to him, holding his fist up proudly. "It's a challenge."

"Who's Ace?" someone asked.

"No idea," another answered.

"Wait, they don't know about Ace?" Usopp said in surprise as Makino and the Mayor both shared a secretive look.

"Well, if Ace was brought to Dadan as a baby, and if he practically grew up in the mountains, I'm guessing it's reasonable," Sanji offered.

"Alright," Luffy called happily, waving to them all. "I'm going now!"

He untied the rope, and soon was rowing out as the town waved goodbye.

"There he goes, mayor," Makino said sadly, her hands on her hips like how a older sister, or maybe even how a mother would look to see him going off on his own. "I'm gonna miss him."

"Don't worry my dear!" Sanji proclaimed to her, "Once I find the All Blue, I will come to you! Wait for me! Just wait for… OWWW!" he called as Nami pulled his ear sharply from behind. "OWW OWW OWW! MY EAR IS ATTACHED YOU KNOW!"

"No more of that," she said firmly as she let go and he rubbed his sore ear.

"He's a disgrace to the village. Becoming a pirate…" the Mayor muttered to himself as Chopper said, "I wish that Dadan and the boys could be here."

"They are," Robin giggled softly.

"Wait? Really?" Franky said looking around. "I don't see them."

Robin merely pointed far behind them to see Dadan, Magra, and Dogra all peeking out from behind a building. "I guess they wanted to see him off too. But this is probably better for them. At least they don't have to worry about causing trouble."

"So touching!" Brook sighed happily, now dancing around in a circle. "Yes, what a marvelous thing to see here! Yohoho! And so this is where the journey officially begins!"

"Yeah!" Usopp and Chopper called out happily as they jumped to the sea, and ran out to chase after Luffy for as long as they could before this memory faded.

"Hey, wait a minute!" Nami yelled as Brook and Franky also joined them.

"No point in trying to stop them," Sanji smiled, waving goodbye to Makino and some of the other women in the village. But soon the happy waves turned into gasps of terror and a giant roar was coming from beneath their feet.

A familiar face suddenly burst out from beneath the sea… the glowing red eyes, long eel-like body of the Sea King that had almost eaten Luffy years before.

"Is that…?" Usopp screamed as he and Chopper hugged each other, running back a few feet as the Sea King looked down at Luffy—as if he had been waiting for another chance to eat him.

"The same sea king that took Shank's arm," Brook stated with a cry of shock.

"Wow, didn't see that coming," Zoro smirked.

"He doesn't mean any harm, he's just hungry," Sanji added.

"Can't you be a little worried?!" Usopp yelled back.

"Relax," Zoro said, "It's not like we're dealing with a defenseless little kid anymore. Watch…"

Luffy was standing calmly in the little boat and tilted his hat down so that his eyes were covered. "So, there you are, Lord of the Coast," he said with a wide smile, glancing up at him, "You don't know who you're messing with. Look at my technique. I've been training for ten years."

Luffy threw his arm back and shouted out, "GUM GUM… PISTOL!"

And it was here that the attack hit the beast perfectly, knocking it with such force that it was knocked out of the sea and fell backwards in the water with an enormous tidal wave.

"Looks like he's finally got that move right," Sanji smirked.

"That was amazing!" Chopper said, eyes shining. "And look at how the crew was created from this!"

"Learned your lesson yet, you dumb fish?" Luffy spoke up smugly, but here, he deserved it. Finally, payback for Shank's arm… it was sweet justice. The villagers from the shore were now cheering and whistling loudly in pride as he gazed out at the sea, tilting his hat back to see that clear, blue sky.

"First I gotta gather a crew!" Luffy said to himself as they joined him on the sea. "I'd like to have about ten people! And then a pirate flag…" he beamed at the thought. "Alright… here I come!"

The other Straw Hat were just watching with satisfaction—wondering just what was in store for them all next as Luffy punched the air, and screamed out at the top of his lungs, "I'M GONNA BE THE KING OF THE PIRATES!"

***Luffy***

Luffy went running through the thick forest, following Ace closely, as if terrified of losing sight of him. But even after not seeing the Middle Forest for so long, it was just how he remembered…

"Ace!" Luffy called happily, "Where're we going?!"

Ace laughed ahead. "Come on, Luffy! I know you're slow, but I would've thought you know the way here by now!"

Onwards they ran until they both came to a stop, both knowing where they were now. Up on the highest tree was the old hideout. It had been years since they had been here, but it brought back so many memories that Luffy couldn't hide the smile as he gazed up at it. But Ace nudged him in the side and pointed at the base of the tree.

As Luffy looked, he spotted him…

Leaning up against the trunk was a young man… about the same age as Ace. He was also as tall and muscular as Ace, and was still wearing the same attire he wore as a child but made bigger to fit his size, while there was a bo staff attached to his back. He had longer hair, and his eyes were hidden by his hat's brim—looking the same as it always was. As soon as he heard them he looked up, and a familiar pair of eyes shown from under his hat, as the smile he had was beaming at them both.

"I see you brought him, Ace," he said, standing up, "Took you long enough."

Luffy gapped at him. "Sabo?" he croaked out, before his eyes shown like stars as he ran forward and embraced his long-lost brother, the tears now back in full as Sabo and Ace grinned at each other over Luffy's head happily.

"Still a crybaby I see," Sabo teased.

**(Hope you enjoyed it. I've always loved seeing these bonding scenes so I couldn't help myself. And Ace was already aware of Dragon being Luffy's dad, so I decided to put in how I thought he found out. I watched a few of these scenes during the Marineford Arc and I couldn't help but add them in. I always believed that Ace must've held a lot of guilt over what happened to Luffy and the bear… and that it was after that did he really become so protective of him… here was the longest chapter yet, and hopefully it will keep you all entertained for awhile. And if anyone was asking about the coins Luffy took with him? I was listening to the first One Piece opening song while writing this and there was a line that said, 'With a pocket full of coins' and I couldn't help myself. And if anyone was wondering what scenes I'm going to do next, you'll have to wait until the next chapter. Anyway, this is my take of the rest of their childhood and I'd love to hear your opinions on it. until later then.)**


	12. Enter the Pirate Hunter: Roronoa Zoro

**Chapter 12: Enter the Pirate Hunter: Roronoa Zoro**

"So he finally set out to sea," Nami sighed, a fond look in her eyes.

"Now the journey officially begins!" Brook called out excitedly, his arms up in the air as he danced around. "Yohohoho, such a wonderful thing to see! Look how far our captain has come since then! Truly inspiring don't you all think? Yohohoho!"

"Well, I'll say this much," Sanji smirked, thinking back to that little kid who used to punch himself in the face when he fought. "He's not that brat who couldn't even through a straight punch."

"And that was how he became the monster we all know and love," Usopp said grinning, feeling more at ease than he had been for a long time. But as he waited for the darkness to fade, he couldn't help but let his mind wonder to some of the memories he had seen before. "You know," he said quietly, "I still don't get how it was possible that we could see some of those things. I mean, in some of those parts, Luffy was out cold right? So why were we able to see what was happening? Like when he was attacked by that bear? We shouldn't have seen some of that right? So what was going on?"

"I've been thinking a lot about that too, and it's hard to say for sure," Robin said, folding her arms as she decided to share her theory with them. "It's almost as if we're seeing bits and pieces of Ace's memories as well. But I don't know how that could be possible. There are so many things happening here that I don't understand."

"From Ace's memory?" Nami repeated startled.

"Just like Usopp said, some of those memories we shouldn't have seen as clearly as we did. Such as when Luffy was attacked, or how we were hearing about Garp and Dadan speaking about Dragon… Luffy shouldn't have been able to see or hear any of that… _we_ shouldn't have been able to see that…" she explained softly. "It's almost like a part of Ace's memory is intertwined with Luffy's… though I don't know how else I can explain it."

"But how is that possible?" Sanji asked her. "Ace is…" he trailed off, unable to finish that line.

"I don't know any more than you do at this moment," Robin sighed helplessly. "But that is the only thing that really makes sense to me. It's only a little bit, but there are parts of Ace's memories mixed in here as well."

"What about Sabo?" Chopper asked her in confusion, "I mean, we didn't see any of his memories… at least I don't think so."

But Robin just shrugged, wishing that she had a better answer for them all.

"I'm just glad that we don't have to deal with watching those snot-nosed nobles again," Franky said, folding his arms as well he thought about them with a surge of anger. "I really can't wait to meet them when we go visit Goa."

"Even if they deserve it, we aren't going to hurt them are we?" Chopper asked worriedly, not liking the idea of being a bad guy.

"Of course we won't go that far," Zoro said coolly. "I never intended to go there and attack them like some low-life bandit. I merely meant simply going to stroll through town and make them sweat. If we attack them, we'll be no better than them won't we? I just want them to see that they're not as powerful as they think they are. I'll only attack if they're dumb enough to attack me." But as Chopper looked away, looking relieved, Zoro added in an undertone, "God, I hope they attack me."

Suddenly the darkness disappeared again and they were in a bright sunny day out on the bright, clear-blue ocean. The familiar sea stretched on forever on all sides, sparkling from the hot sun from above—but there was also a gentle breeze that blew over with clouds drifting lazily across the sky.

"It's gorgeous," Nami whispered, smiling brightly, breathing in the salty air—only wishing that she could really feel the sea air on her face. "It's so good to be back on the sea."

"Yeah, but I still don't like this," Usopp said, still standing on the water as he watched the waves lapped up over his boots but passed right through without getting wet. "It's not natural."

"Nothing about this crazy place is natural," Zoro said, wondering just what was happening now. But before he could get his bearing straight, Chopper suddenly screamed out and jumped up onto his shoulder fearfully, pointing out to their far left.

"Chopper, what is it?" he asked in annoyance, forcing him to let go of his neck as he glared out to see what was going on. "Oh…" he said in mild surprise.

"What?" Usopp asked but then his mouth fell open in horror. There was a giant whirlpool right in front of them, large enough to sink a sailboat. It stretched out in all directions in a perfect circle, spiraling down to, most likely, the bottom of the ocean… the center was pitch black and the sound coming from inside it would've been deafening if you were near it.

"Where'd that thing come from?" Brook called in surprise.

"I don't know, but judging from the calm weather, this should still be the East Blue," Nami said gazing up at the cloud formations, "But it's still unbelievable to see such a big whirlpool out here!"

"How can you tell, Nami-san?" Brook asked her, looking up as well, but unable to see what she was seeing.

"The weather patterns and wind are much more stable," Nami answered, still examining the clouds. "It's not as… random as the Grand Line weather."

"But why are we seeing this?" Sanji asked, when just that moment, they could see a large and luxurious ship sailing by the whirlpool.

"Is that a pirate ship?" Chopper asked curiously, shielding his eyes from the sun so that he could get a good look at the flag.

"No, it's just a passenger ship," Robin answered, "And considering the history of the East Blue, there are a lot of cruises and travelling done here."

"Hey!" Nami said worriedly, watching the ship sailing closer. "If they get any nearer they could get into trouble."

"It's big but is the whirlpool really big enough to suck them in?" Usopp asked in surprise.

"Maybe not sink it, but they could still do a lot of damage," Franky said, lifting his sunglasses to get a look at the ship.

But as Zoro kept his eye on the ship, he noticed something popping up from the ocean a little ways from the ocean's vortex. "Hmm?" he said as he looked over to see a large barrel bobbing in the water and drifting along the current towards the ship. He blinked once before his eye widen and he looked from the whirlpool to the barrel. "Oh, no…" he moaned out, "Don't tell me…?"

"What's wrong now?" Brook asked.

"What's wrong is that the barrel there looks familiar," Zoro told him, pointing it out. "Where did we see a barrel that big before…?"

"What you mean the one that Luffy took with him and…?" she stopped talking as it slowly dawned on her what he was saying.

"You don't think…?" Usopp asked, eyes wide.

"Did that idiot get sucked into that whirlpool?!" Nami cried out angrily, looking around and suddenly seeing the few broken shards of wood that must've come from a tiny boat. "Is he nuts? How could he sail straight into a _whirlpool_?!"

"Well, since he couldn't swim, I think that was his best option," Robin smiled as she watched the container go bobbing over to the ship were a few deckhands heard it bump against the side and looked down.

"That's hardly the issue here!" Nami yelled at her as the men pulled out a rope and hook so that they could try heaving it up, thinking it was full of booze or food.

"You really think that Luffy's in there?" Usopp asked with Chopper glancing at it with curiosity as it was slowly hauled to the deck.

"I'd bet my best cooking knife on that," Sanji sighed, "Idiot just left home and he already almost got himself killed."

"How could he have survived without us there?" Usopp asked exasperatedly. But just as the men were about to open the barrel, the crewmate in the crow's nest suddenly screamed out something about pirates. Looking up and over the deck, their jaws suddenly fell open in horror at what was coming towards them. Sneaking out from the cover of a nearby island was a large pink ship, with four sails, each with pink heart, and the ship itself has two hearts on each side. The figurehead looked like a duck, or swan it was hard to tell, while its flag was of a sideways skull with a heart.

"Oh, that poor ship!" Franky called out, falling to his knees in horror. "What the hell did they do to it?"

"It looks like something a little girl would use," Sanji said, sweating, "But a pirate?"

"Bet you anything that the captain's a girl," Zoro said, feeling sick at the thought of sailing under a flag like that.

"It's almost… too cute," Robin said blankly.

The men were freaking out and dropped the barrel at once just as the cannons were sounded off in the distance.

"Oh, come on! What's the point of seeing all that?" Usopp cried out as the memory quickly faded away.

"I think it's fascinating," Robin said lightly, "I see what happened. Luffy sets sail, and sometime during the journey he must've been pulled into the whirlpool and saved himself by climbing into the barrel. He just happened to end up here."

"What rotten timing," Brook said thinking it over, "He's pulled onto a ship just as a pirate raid is about to happen."

"He's always had bad luck when it comes to stuff like this," Zoro sighed.

"That's for sure," Nami agreed tiredly, thinking painfully of all the trouble that boy put them through because of his rotten luck, "But then again, when it counts, he does have amazingly good luck too. It really all depends on the situation I guess."

"But why doesn't he come out of that barrel?" Chopper asked her.

But before Nami could answer they were suddenly in the lower parts of the ship. They could hear the sounds of fighting above deck and Luffy's barrel was now lying among some destroyed tables and china showing that it somehow must've rolled down here and smashed.

"Um… hello?" squeaked a voice from nowhere. At first, the Straw Hats didn't see anyone until they noticed a boy's face cautiously sticking his head into the room. He was a chubby boy with pink hair and round glasses, his face was timid and he was glancing around fearfully as if he expected someone to jump out and attack him.

Recognizing him at once, Zoro's one eye widen in surprise. "Coby?" he said.

"Coby?" Brook repeated in confusion.

"Wait, you mean that's Coby?" Nami said startled, "That's the same friend of Luffy's that we met back at Water 7?"

"Ah, a friend of Luffy-san's," Brook said in understanding, looking at Coby with new interest.

"Yeah, a Marine friend of his," Chopper explained.

"Ehhhh? He's a Marine?" Brook cried in shock, "What a surprise this is!"

"Believe me, you aren't the only one who thinks that," Nami sighed.

"Coby sure looks different though," Chopper said, looking at him, "He was a lot taller when we saw him!"

"He did a lot of growing up in a short time," Zoro nodded, "Apparently Garp took him under his wing and had been training him since we last saw him."

"Garp? Oh, that explains a lot," Franky said, thinking of Luffy's insane grandpa.

Coby continued to look around. "I sure hope no one's in here," he said to himself as he walked in.

"I don't see anyone do you?" Sanji asked as if talking to someone slow.

Coby sighed in relief, his hand over his heart, glad to see that he was alone. "That's a relief," he said before he spotted the barrel. "Wow," he said, still talking to himself as he went over to look at it, "That's one big barrel, I wonder what's inside it?"

"Won't he get a shock to find out that there's a pirate inside it?" Usopp smirked, hoping that they would get to see it as Coby began to push it out of the room and through to the next room.

But as he struggled with it, a voice suddenly growled out, "It's our favorite coward."

Glancing up, there were three pirates poking their heads through the next door. "Trying to hide in here and duck out on all the action again?" one of them snarled at Coby who jumped back, waving his hands in the air, trying to explain that he was only trying to bring them that barrel of booze over to them.

"Wait a minute… if he's a marine, why would he be on a pirate crew?" Brook asked in confusion.

"Because he was being held prisoner," Zoro explained, thinking back to what Coby told him when they first met. "He was stuck as a cabin boy for a pirate captain named Alvida."

"Why?" Usopp asked baffled, "He doesn't look like much of a fighter."

"Neither do you, but you have your uses," Sanji pointed out as Usopp glared at him.

"HEY!" he yelled outraged.

"I think Coby was pretty decent at Navigation and that's why they kept him," Zoro said with a shrug as the pirates laughed at Coby and attempted to 'lighten the load'.

"You can't!" Coby cried out in fear, "Lady Alvida will kill us if she ever finds out!"

"She won't if you keep your trap shut," one sneered at him, "Right, Coby?"

"Yeah, right," Coby squealed, looking ready to agree with just about anything they said to keep them happy.

"We sure that's the same kid we met?" Sanji asked uncertainly, as the fat pirate heaved the barrel up right. "He's a chicken with no guts."

"Hold on boys," the pirate said again, cracking his knuckles, "I'll open her the old fashion way."

"Wait… you mean break a barrel of liquor?" Usopp repeated, jaw falling open, "What sense does that make?"

"Well, not all pirates are genius's you know," Zoro said sweatdropped, even if there was booze in there, it would be such a waste… tragic.

The pirate held his fist high but he held it there dramatically for a second to long… something came burst through the wood, smashing the lid to pieces and the familiar face of Monkey D. Luffy suddenly there. His face was one who had a good night's sleep and he was stretching out widely as he suddenly cried out, "I SLEPT SO GOOD!"

Without even realizing what he did, Luffy accidentally knocked out the same pirate who had been attempting to break open the barrel and he was out before he even hit the ground.

"Sounds like it was a good nap," Franky roared with laughter as Coby and the other two men screamed out in terror. "Now that's something I didn't see coming!"

Luffy finished yawning and stretching out—looking at the scene in confusion. The pirate he knocked out was now moaning slightly on the floor as he glanced down at him. "Who's that?"

"The pirate you knocked out?" Brook offered helpfully with a laugh.

The other two pirates were staring at him with open mouths, too stunned to move. "Who the hell are you?" Luffy asked as if they had bothered him.

"Who the hell are you!?" they screamed back at them.

"Your friend will catch a cold sleeping like that," Luffy added casually as he stepped out of his barrel.

"You're the one who knocked him out!" the pirates yelled hysterically.

"You think they've never seen a man fall asleep in a barrel before," Franky said grinning.

One of the pirates pointed a sword at Luffy's face as he demanded, "Hold up! Are you messing with us? Don't you know that we're vicious pirates!?"

Naturally, Luffy ignored what they were saying as he turned to Coby, who was staring at him in panic—like he thought that Luffy was going to eat him.

"I'm starving. Got any food?" he asked him.

"Of course that would be the first thing he thinks of," Sanji sighed, shaking his head. "Honestly doesn't he ever think about anything but food?"

"Fighting?" Usopp offered helpfully.

"Adventures?" Chopper added.

"He's got a one track mind that he can't help," Nami sighed, but she was fighting a smile. "I guess we just have to live with it."

"I'm talking to you!" the pirate yelled, furious that Luffy wasn't even looking at them.

"You damn kid!" the second shouted as they attempted to attack him with their swords. However, their fight was over so fast that most of them didn't see what had happened… the only thing they were aware of was that the swords were snapped in two, and the halves were now embedded in the ceiling while the two were brought to their knees shaking in terror as they stared at Luffy.

"Wow, he can break swords now?" Chopper asked in amazement.

"Those were some cheap swords," Zoro grunted, really why would anyone want to use just a couple dull blades like that? Those things were barely sharp. Pathetic…

"What is wrong with you two?" Luffy asked them both annoyed.

"Really," Franky agreed. "If they're crying over this… I'm almost afraid to see how their captain is."

"Wh…who are you?" one croaked out, his eyes wide and sweat pouring down his face.

"Me? My name's Monkey D. Luffy," Luffy said happily as he crossed his arms and grinned. "Hi."

"Nice way to meet someone," Usopp laughed as the two went screaming from the room, dragging out their unconscious friend behind them. "Knock them out, break their weapons and introduce themselves after all that. Typical of you, Luffy."

"They looked like they were about to shit themselves," Sanji laughed loudly.

Coby, who was cowering on his knees behind Luffy was now gawking up at him, as he peaked through his trembling fingers.

"So ah… what just happened?" Coby stuttered, not understanding what.

"Ya got me," Luffy said, unconcerned—probably thinking that those men had issues.

Coby blinked before he suddenly started to freak out and yelled, "Quick, you gotta run! If those guys come back with their buddies then they'll kill you on the spot!"

"Didn't he see him deal with those guys there?" Brook asked, tilting his head. "He shouldn't worry."

"Those guys were nothing but a bunch of bullies and cowards anyway," Sanji said in a bored way. "They go after other weaklings… but when they finally meet someone stronger than them, off they go—crying all the way."

"That's usually what happens," Usopp sighed in disappointment. "These guys have no idea to what it means to be a real pirate."

"Isn't that what you used to do?" Nami asked him, eyebrows raised.

"Hey, I changed a lot since then I'll have you know!" he told hotly.

"I don't care about that, I'm hungry," Luffy said still grinning, even as he was sniffing the air—much like how a dog would when he smelled food.

"How can you just blow this off like that!?" Coby continued to panic, now screaming, "There are hundreds of them up on deck and they're waiting for an excuse to kill anything!"

Luffy ignored him as he headed towards the nearest door, Coby now attempting to hold him back as he grabbed hold of one of his arms. But Luffy kept going forward, not paying any attention as he went sniffing out for the source of the food. Nothing was going to stop him, even when Coby's head was slammed in the door.

"I think it goes without saying, nothing stands between Luffy and food," Robin smiled as they continued to follow him as he found his way to the storage room that was filled with crates of foodstuff. Drooling in happiness, Luffy jumped down, looking around to try and figure out what he should eat first.

"That's as good as treasure to him," Sanji laughed as Luffy finally made up his mind and dove his face into a giant crate of apples. He was so focused on eating, that they were pretty sure that he couldn't hear any of the questions that Coby was asking him.

"So you said that he's only being held as a prisoner, he's not actually a pirate?" Chopper asked them all as he looked at Coby.

"That's what I heard," Zoro told him, "So this is when Luffy met Coby… but why is this all important?"

"So are we on a pirate ship or what?" Luffy asked suddenly with a mouthful of apple.

"Why didn't he sit through Makino-san's lessons?" Sanji hissed to himself, disgusted at his manners.

"No, we're on a passenger ship that's being raided by pirates," Coby explained quickly, "Pirates under the command of Lady Alvida."

"Who?" Chopper asked in confusion.

"Never heard of her either," Franky said with a yawn.

"Just some run-of-the-mill pirate," Nami said, thinking back. "I remember stealing from her once."

"You did?" Robin asked in mild surprise.

"Yeah," Nami nodded, rubbing the back of her head with a satisfied smile. "It was when she was attacking a passenger ship just like this one once. I dressed up as a pirate and sunk on board. I left before the fighting was over with all her treasure… I have to say that it was a decent haul."

"Of all places to be stuck on," Usopp sighed. "Just what kind of star was he born under?"

"I think we all liked to know that," Zoro agreed darkly, folding his arms.

"Ah, who cares?" Luffy asked, not at all concerned. "What I wanna know is if they're any boats on board."

"What's the point of getting one when you'll just end up sinking it!" Nami hollered at him, once again, wishing that she could give Luffy a piece of her mind.

"I think there are a few," Coby said after thinking it over.

"Great, cause mine got sucked into some big whirlpool," Luffy explained.

"I knew it," Zoro muttered, shaking his head.

"That idiot!" Nami cried out, smacking her forehead. "You don't normally steer your ship into a _whirlpool_!"

"That big one outside?!" Coby cried out in amazement, "NO way! No one could've survived that!'

"Yeah, I gotta say it was a big surprise!" Luffy laughed loudly, finally turning to look at Coby.

"He doesn't seem that fazed by it, considering _he can't swim_!" Usopp called loudly.

"Would've been embarrassing if he drowned just when he left home," Zoro yawned.

As Coby continued to stare at Luffy, just as he asked, "So are you one of the pirates or one of the passengers."

Coby suddenly flinched and looked down in shame as he explained that he had been Alvida's prisoner after he accidently mistaken a fishing boat and a pirate boat together. So in order to live, he had been forced to work as a cabin boy for the last two years. He said that the only reason he was still alive was because he did whatever they told him.

"It must've been very hard for you Coby-san," Brook said softly, "Forced to serve a pirate crew for two years…"

Nami's eyes soften at that. She understood the feeling of being forced to work for such cruel pirates… but here Coby must've had plenty of chances to escape surely? So what was he waiting for?

"You mean he got on the wrong boat and now he's stuck here forever?" Usopp repeated incredulously.

"How can anyone be that dumb?" Zoro asked.

"If memory serves me correctly, didn't you get on the wrong ship back at Sabaody, Moss-Head?" Sanji reminded him with an amused grin. "You thought that this great big galleon was the fishing boat."

"Shut up!" Zoro shouted at him, his face slightly red. "It was that old man's fault! His instructions were too complicated!"

"Complicated?" Nami repeated, staring at him, amazed by his level's of stupidity. "How could you possibly get something like that mixed up?!"

"You weren't there so what do you know?!" he barked back at her.

"Geez, you're pretty stupid, you know that right?" Luffy asked Coby bluntly once he had heard everything and finished stuffing his mouth—the harsh honesty of his words made them all forget about the argument and turned to watch.

"Geez, thanks for your honesty," Coby muttered as he lowered his head pitifully.

"If you hate it here then leave?" Luffy suggested.

"For once I agree with him," Nami said frowning. "It's not like there's anything Alvida's holding over his head! He could've left a long time ago!"

"Are you kidding?" Coby cried out, shaking his head violently from side to side, "No way! Na'ah! Not a chance! Just the thought of Alvida finding me scares me so bad I wanna throw up!"

"What a baby," Franky sighed, "By the time she notice's he's gone, he'll be far away by then."

"So on top of being an idiot, he's stuck here for life!" Zoro said lightly.

"Harsh way to put it, but I have to agree," Usopp said darkly as Nami shook her own head. Come on, even he would've been desperate enough to escape as soon as he got the chance…

"So you're a moron and a coward!" Luffy laughed. "I hate people like you!"

At his words, Coby started crying out—just proving what they all knew. But Robin blinked in surprise before a small smile appeared on her face again as her eyes shone with amusement. Sanji glanced at her and asked, "What is it Robin-san?" he asked her.

"Just feeling a sense of Déjà vu," she answered honestly.

"Déjà vu?" Chopper repeated in confusion.

"It means the strong sensation that something like this has happened before," she answered. "I just noticed how similar that Luffy was treating Coby here. It was the same way to how Ace treated Luffy during their childhood: harsh and blunt."

"Huh… you know, now that you mention it… Luffy does seem to act a lot like Ace sometimes…" Chopper said thinking it over.

"After spending so much time together, it's only natural," Sanji said lightly as Coby kept crying. After a few minutes Coby regained control and rubbed his swollen eyes as he muttered, "Hey, you're right Luffy… If I had the courage, I could drift alone in a barrel and be rid of this place. I actually have my own dreams! Someday… I'd like to live out all of them."

"But he won't be able to do anything if he doesn't leave," Chopper said. He learned that years ago… just sitting around and waiting wasn't going to cause your dreams to come true. You have to be willing to go out into the world and risk your life for them! That was what Luffy taught him when they met… sure it had been a dangerous and long road since he left home… but he didn't regret it. He was happier here with his friends than he was back on Drum. There were plenty of nights that he felt homesick and wanted to go back to see it again… but when he woke up to a new day, he couldn't imagine anywhere he rather be.

"When the world shoves you around, you gotta stand up and shove back," Zoro said, folding his arms darkly. "It's not like somebody's gonna save you if you start babbling excuses."

"Very well said, Zoro-san," Brook said softly, but also remembering how when the Straw Hats appeared out of nowhere and saved him. "But a little help now and again doesn't hurt…"

Coby stayed quiet for a few more seconds before he finally looked up at Luffy and asked timidly, "So what about you, Luffy? What was it that got you to first set sail on these seas?"

"Well, I'm gonna be King of the pirates," Luffy said with a wide smile, as if he couldn't be happier that Coby had asked him that.

As soon as the words were out of his mouth, Coby's mouth fell open in horror and his face was contorted in absolute panic—like he was close to having another freak-out episode.

"Maybe that wasn't the best thing to say to someone," Nami offered evenly.

Coby's mouth was moving, but he didn't seem to know how to speak. Finally, he croaked out, "The King…?"

Luffy nodded. "Yep," he said simply.

"Are you serious?" Coby asked in disbelief.

"Yeah," Luffy said cheerfully.

"But…" Coby hissed, "but that would mean you're a pirate _too_!"

"If you want to be the Pirate King, that would help," Robin smiled.

"Right," Luffy confirmed proudly.

"Your crew?" Coby continued to ask, shaking—as if terrified to learn the answer.

"Don't have one yet, but I'm looking for them," Luffy told him firmly. But at those words, Coby froze… as if he had become a statue.

"Is he ok?" Usopp asked slowly, watching Luffy's smile fade and waving his hand in front of Coby's face.

"Well, he didn't expect such a happy and cheerful person to be a pirate," Robin offered, "Luffy's nothing like the standard pirate that you normally think of. So I guess he was just taken aback, especially since he came out and opened up to him."

"He wouldn't be the first one to do that," Nami smiled, having the same feelings of surprise when she first met Luffy. "He's not like any other person I've ever met."

Coby stood up suddenly find his voice and he began yelling, "King of the Pirates is a title given to one who has attended everything the world has to offer! You're talking about seeking out the great treasure of wealth, fame, and power! The treasure that you seek is the One Piece!"

"Yeah," Luffy said brightly.

"Yeah… that's it?" Coby demanded sounding close to hysteria, "Pirates from all over the world are looking for that treasure you know!"

"Oh, he knows, he just doesn't care," Usopp said grinning.

"Yeah so?" Luffy asked predictably.

"No way! It's Impossible, impossible, impossible! There's no way someone like you could ever reach the top in the Great Pirate Age!" Coby yelled frantically as he shook his head rapidly.

"What's he mean by that?" Chopper asked, "He doesn't think Luffy can do it?"

But no one could answer him as Coby kept screaming out, getting louder with every second, "There are just too many out there who are meaner and better and…" But before he could finish saying what was on his mind, Luffy finally gave him a sharp punch to the top of his head, so that he did a face-plant on the floor.

"Thank you for shutting him up," Sanji said, flipping his hair back. "He was starting to drive me crazy."

"Any longer and he would've burst a blood vessel," Robin stated coolly as Coby moaned on the floor with his hands over his head.

"Ow!" he whined, "Why did you hit me!?"

"I thought it was obvious," Brook said cheerfully. "My ears were starting to hurt from all the shouting! Ah, not that I have any ears to hear with! Yohoho!"

"Brook…? Just do you hear?" Usopp asked curiously, wanting to have ask him that for a long time.

"The same way that I see, Usopp-san," Brook answered as if it was obvious.

Usopp blinked. "What…?" he asked, but Luffy had interrupted by answering Coby.

"Cause I felt like it," he said.

"He rarely ever thinks about anything… he goes by instinct," Nami sighed.

Coby slowly sat up, his hand still on the spot where Luffy hit him. "Oh well, I'm used to that stuff. My crewmates smack me around a lot. All the time in fact."

"With crewmates like that, who needs friends?" Franky asked in disgust.

Luffy gently put his hand on his hat as he explained, "It's not about _if_ I can. I'm doing it 'cause I want to do it." Coby looked up at him as Luffy took the straw hat off and stared at it. The Straw Hats all knew at once what must've been going through his head as he stared at it. He was thinking of Shanks…

"I decided long ago that I was going to be King of the Pirates," he said without any doubt or fear in his voice, "If I have to die fighting for that, then I die."

Zoro smirked. "I think we all feel that way," he said as they all nodded. They all willingly chose to run off and chase their dreams and were willing to die for what they wanted. They were going to go to the end together.

Coby didn't say a word—he only continued to stare long and hard at him as seeing something that he never seen before. Zoro smirked again. He had seen that many times. Luffy's apparent selflessness often inspires others to chase their dreams as well. He knew better than anyone what that felt like… to be willing to risk your life for what you believe in… what you wanted… here, probably for the first time, Coby was thinking about what _he_ wanted, and wondering if he was willing to fight for it. There was just something about Luffy that did that…

Right now… Luffy stood for everything that Coby was against, but already he could tell that Coby was beginning to see Luffy as a friend. After putting the hat back on, Luffy turned to leave, ready to go look for a boat to 'borrow'.

"I guess I never thought of it like that," Coby said to himself as he thought over everything Luffy said. "If I put my mind to it… if I'm prepared to die for it… could I do something like that?"

"Anyone can if you put your mind to it!" Usopp said grinning. "And if they laugh or say its impossible, just keep going and prove them wrong!"

"Well said," Franky said joyfully and clapped a metal hand on his shoulder.

Luffy must've heard him, even though it was hardly more than a whisper. "Like what?" he asked curiously.

"Do you think…?" Coby asked hesitantly, as if afraid that Luffy would laugh if he said what was on his mind, "Do you think I could ever join the Marines?"

"Marines?" Luffy repeated in surprise.

"Yes!" Coby yelled, standing up, tears in his eyes as he proclaimed his deepest wish of becoming a Marine and hunt down criminals.

"Do you think I can do it?" Coby asked Luffy.

"Criminal…" Robin said softly, suddenly thinking that down. Just what made a criminal she wondered? Did becoming a criminal make you bad? She learned the hard way a long time ago that the views of what's right and wrong change more often than the phases of the moon. Just what made something bad she wondered?

"How would I know that?" Luffy answered honestly with a short laugh, interrupting her thoughts—almost thinking that Luffy had heard her.

"Then I'm gonna do it!" Coby exclaimed as he pumped his arms up, his confidence going up by leaps and bounds as he followed after him. "I'm not gonna get stuck here as a cabin boy for the rest of my life!"

"You tell 'em!" Franky cheered on. "You go and do what you want!"

"I'll break out and then turn right around and catch Alvida myself!" Coby proclaimed loudly, quickly following Luffy… but almost as soon as he said that, the ceiling above them suddenly exploded.

"What the hell?!" Sanji yelled, quickly moving out of the way instinctively, though there wasn't any reason. Just then, the form of what looked like, at first, was a giant blob crashing from the upper decks and landed with a bang in front of them. Coby was screaming and moved back, all the confidence he once had vanishing on the spot.

"What's going on?" Chopper screamed out, ducking behind Franky, now wishing he knew what was going on.

"Who is that you're planning on catching, Coby?" demanded a harsh voice, definitely female however. "And you actually think this twig is gonna help you?"

Coby only shrank back to the corner, shaking in terror, covering his face with his hands as if hoping that would hide him.

"Well?" the voice demanded and the smoke cleared enough for them to see who it was and several of them gasped. "Answer me!"

Chopper's mouth dropped in surprise. "Wow, she's huge!"

"_Who_ is that?" Brook gasped, hoping that he would never see _her_ panties.

"That, my friends," Nami explained, her hands on her hips, "Is Alvida. Captain of the Alvida Pirates."

"Creative name," Zoro said sarcastically, rolling his eyes as most of the rest just gaped at her. She was a very obese woman with long wavy black hair, and freckles on her cheeks. But she looked more like a round dumpling… They'd never seen a woman as big as her before.

"Who are you going to catch!?" Alvida demanded again harshly, holding up an enormous mace over her shoulders.

"Come on Coby!" Chopper screamed out, getting over his shock, and now trying to encourage Coby to stand up and fight back, "You can do it!"

Suddenly, several swords came through the back wall, just missing Luffy's head on either side of him. Glancing at them in mild surprise, Alvida glared at Coby before she turned her attention back up at Luffy—looking him up and down. She suddenly smirked. "Well… my guess is that you're not Zoro the Pirate Hunter."

Zoro's one eye blinked in surprise as Luffy looked confused as he repeated, "Zoro?"

But Alvida didn't go on as she glared back down at Coby. "Coby," she barked and he jumped in terror, "who's the most beautiful of all on these seas?"

"Sure as hell isn't you," Franky answered, which made Brook laugh loudly.

"Has she ever seen her reflection?" Usopp said, looking ready to collapse at such a question. "She can't honestly mean herself can she?"

"Yeah, the answer is me obviously," Nami said shaking her head and this time, Usopp really did fall over at Nami's lack of modesty.

"There is no doubt in my mind, Nami my love!" Sanji suddenly cried out, turning his attention back to her, now gazing at her as if she were the setting sun.

"What an idiot," Zoro muttered in disgust.

"What was that, Moss-head?" Sanji barked. While at the same time, Coby tried to answer her, but stuttered the whole time… unable to form any audible words.

"Hey Coby, who's the fat lady?" Luffy asked bluntly as he pointed at Alvida. There was stunned silence for a fraction of a moment. Coby and Alvida were both gapping at him, as the pirates who were sticking their heads down through the hole were staring at him in shock. But the Straw Hats were all roaring with laughter.

Brook had fallen to his knees and was beating the floor with a boney fist as Robin giggled to herself and everyone had tears of laughter in their eyes. Only Sanji remained silent, but only because he believed that every woman deserved respect… he just stood there, watching them, shaking his head at Luffy's rudeness.

"Oh no!" one of the pirates above them croaked out, knowing that their captain wasn't going to take this sitting down.

Alvida looked like she was really going to burst blood vessels as she glared at Luffy—her face contorted with fury. "YOU RUNTS!" she roared as she brought her mace swinging down at him, who easily jumped up and landed light as a feather next to Coby once Alvida smashed the floor where he had been standing a moment before… the attack sending the shrapnel everywhere.

"Let's go!" Luffy said excitedly as he grabbed Coby's arm, and together, they went flying through the hole, Coby clinging to Luffy in terror.

"This is a riot!" Franky laughed as he jumped up, and they all followed after them. "I can't remember enjoying a show more!"

They jumped up in time to arrive on a large deck with Luffy already fighting the entire crew; who was jumping around and smacking them all like they were rag dolls. It wasn't even a fight… the monsters back in Goa were a bigger threat than these weaklings. But, without a doubt, the best part was where Luffy finally decided to show off his powers. And with one Gum Gum Rocket… ended up clobbering them all as they tried to run in terror…

"Just shows how hard work and determination can pay off," Sanji answered, remembering all the times that he worked with cooking and fighting. His ribs still hurt at the memories of all the kicks he got from the old geezer while he was growing up.

Coby staggered to his feet and took a few shaky steps towards Luffy, staring at him with his jaw wide open. "Luffy… what are you?"

"You would think they've never seen a Rubberman before," Brook said happily.

"Oh," Luffy said, as if just remembering. He grabbed hold of his cheek and stretched it out, explaining, "I'm a Rubberman."

"So you're… made of rubber?" Coby repeated in disbelief. He was completely unaware that Alvida was now standing behind him.

"That's normally what a Rubberman is made of," Nami said evenly as Alvida cleared her throat from behind Coby, who squealed and went to hide behind Luffy as she gazed at Luffy with new interest.

"So, you've eaten one of the Devil Fruits, right?" Alvida asked, although she already had her answer.

"Yeah, I ate the Gum Gum Fruit," Luffy confirmed, letting his cheek snap back into place.

"I've heard rumors about it, but I haven't seen any proof of them before today," Alvida said idly, and then she asked if he was a bounty hunter.

"I'm a pirate," Luffy corrected.

"Pirate?" Alvida scoffed, rolling her eyes. "All by yourself on these waters?"

"Well, we all have to start somewhere," Usopp laughed. But Robin's attention was distracted for a moment when she saw someone behind them on Alvida's ship sneaking over the side with a giant load on her back. She blinked, startled, she could've sworn she recognized that orange hair… was that…?

But Luffy was talking again, "Today it's just me! But I'll find my crew tomorrow! Or next week or something. I need, I dunno, like ten guys. Yeah… ten," he decided.

"Well, he's gotten that," Sanji said. "All of us here… plus once our favorite Fishman once he joins…"

"Ace was right, that's just like him to want a small crew," Nami sighed, but still having a good time. She was liking these memories much better than the sad ones they had watched.

Alvida only laughed again as she demanded, "Tell me. If we're both pirates and we're not under the same flag… then that makes us enemies am I right?"

"Luffy? Let's go," Coby whispered in fear, trying to get his attention.

"But why?" Luffy asked in confusion.

"Yeah, why?" Zoro said in annoyance, "He saw what he could do… you think he would be more optimistic about him beating her."

"Fear does that to people I suppose," Chopper said, wondering just what was going to happen next.

"You saw how powerful her club is. And of all the villainous cheats in all these waters she's easily the most…" Coby suddenly stopped himself in mid-sentence. He stared long and hard at Luffy, and they could see that his mind was working hard. Here was his chance… to either turn back on his dream, or to finally start fighting for it… and himself.

"Go on, tell me?" Alvida asked with a wide grin on her face.

Coby was shaking, his teeth were grinding together as he fought to find the right words. Finally, he looked Alvida straight in the eyes and yelled out, "You're the most… ugliest thing on the seas!"

"Yeah!" Franky yelled out, punching the air. "That's right!"

"He did it!" Chopper cried out happily, jumping up and down. "He found his courage!"

Zoro, Nami, and Usopp were all laughing with Luffy, who seemed to be having a great deal of fun. Alvida's eyes were dark… she was glaring down at Coby coldly, who was shaking—stunned by his own daring.

"What did you say!?" Alvida demanded, and though it was clear that Coby was terrified, he didn't back down—even with tears burning his eyes.

"I'm leaving and I'm gonna join the Marines!" he yelled up at her, his courage rushing forward like how it did before when he talked to Luffy, "Then I'm gonna spend the rest of my life beating up dirty pirates like you!"

"Do you have any clue to what you're saying to me right now?" she bellowed at him.

"Of course I do and I'm gonna do what I want and no one's gonna stop me! And when I join the Marines I'll join them!" Coby said loudly, before finally screaming out, "_And I'm gonna capture your lousy ass first_!"

"You tell her!" Brook said proudly. "Standing up for yourself is the same for standing up for your dreams!"

Alvida lost it completely as she held her mace high, screaming out that he was dead. Coby froze, and was screaming just as Luffy stopped laughing, but the smile never faded.

"Well said!" Luffy told him, moving to stand in front as he took the full blunt of the weapon. Coby screamed again as he was hit, but the Straw Hats all grinned—knowing that this was nothing. The spikes were dull, and he was now grinning.

"That won't work," he taunted so that Alvida eyes widen in disbelief. Luffy knocked the mace upwards. "Cause I'm rubber!" he told her—the Straw Hats heard that often enough to think fondly of how many times that little fact had gotten Luffy out of trouble.

Luffy pulled his arm back, sending it back as far as it would stretch so that it left the ship and was already over the ocean. "Gum Gum… PISTOL!" he screamed, bringing it back—and like that—Alvida was sent flying off as he punched her to the gut.

"LUFFY!" Sanji hollered at him furiously, "DON'T YOU DARE MISTREAT A LADY!"

But no one took him any heed as everyone in the memory gapped at Luffy… unable to believe that he took out their captain in one hit. But he turned to the rest of the crew on the opposite ship and demanded, "Hey, you? Go find a boat and give it to Coby. He's leaving to join the Marines. You're not gonna stop him!"

Nami smiled quietly. "That's so like him…"

"Even though they just met, he's already treating Coby like a friend," Usopp stated, "And he's helping him out here."

"When he sees someone willing to fight for their dream, then he wants to fight with them as well," Brook said, truly touched by the scene as Coby thanked Luffy, his voice full of sincerity. Not a moment too soon though, there was the sounds of cannon fire and the ship was tossed violently as they all turned to see that the Marines had finally shown up.

"Right on time, they arrive _after_ the problem's been dealt with, like always," Sanji sighed. Luffy happily told Coby that the timing couldn't have been better as he jumped overboard to where the pirates had gotten the boat ready.

But Coby didn't want to stay—not that they blamed him. If the Marines caught him, then they would surely throw him into prison for his work on Alvida's crew. Though technically a pirate himself the fact that he had still been doing odd jobs for them would have been more than enough to earn him a prison cell.

So the two jumped into the boat, and let it fall to the ocean below—deciding to take their chances in escaping.

"You know, Luffy's still not technically a pirate, so they can't really do anything to him," Usopp pointed out. "He's got no crew, he hasn't done anything yet… so they can't…"

"You think that loudmouth would keep that a secret?" Sanji demanded irritably. "He's proud of it! He can't wait to tell that to anyone who even looks at him that he's… he's a pirate…" he stopped dead, his voice caught in his throat as he looked up.

The others had followed his gaze, and Nami's eyes widen. As the ship had fallen, water had splashed everywhere and though it was hard to tell—especially with all the cannons going off—but there was a single passenger in another small boat who was tying an enormous bag that could only be filled with treasure…

"Nami?" Usopp cried out in surprise.

"That is me!" Nami said, remembering now. "That's right! I told you all that I robbed from Alvida before! I just didn't think that this was that same day!"

"You don't remember seeing Luffy there?" Chopper asked as the Luffy and Nami in the memory both caught each other's attention. They exchanged eye contact for a fraction of a second, but that didn't last long as they both turned back to the matter at hand on escaping.

"So much was happening," Nami said softly, "I didn't really get a good look at his face… but I do remember wondering what kind of idiot would drop down like that with no warning!" The truth was that she was used to risking her life and doing dangerous stuff all the time after eight years of stealing from pirates so she didn't pay any attention to him. But really, how could she have possibly known that the boy she saw that day would become her future captain?

Robin voiced her thought: "Fate works in strange ways," she said as they all nodded along with her.

The cannons kept falling and there were shouts of panic as the ships rocked and rolled. Luffy and Coby went back to steering their ship and soon, Nami was lost in the chaos that happened. With their attention focused on rounding up the pirates, the Marines didn't notice the two small boats making a break for it.

Thanks to their small size, they were able to slip pass them all and soon the turmoil was nothing but distant shouts and booms in the distance. Coby and Luffy were both sailing through the calm water, with Luffy grinning happily.

Coby was staring around him, as if he couldn't believe where he was. After two years of near slavery, he was finally free. "We actually managed to get away," he whispered.

Luffy started to chuckle. "What fun!" he laughed.

"Of course he had a blast," Nami sighed.

"Hell, I had fun and I didn't do anything!" Franky said, pressing down on his nose to give himself a shark's fin hairdo. "But boy, I wish I was part of the action!"

"So Luffy," Coby asked, suddenly turning his attention back to him. "If you're searching for the elusive One Piece, then that would mean you're heading to the Grand Line. The guys I've talked to all call that place the pirate graveyard."

"You don't know the half of it pal," Sanji said. "After all… what you're talking about is only the first half and it's considered 'paradise'."

"Right, and that's why I need an extra strong crew," Luffy said firmly, thinking to himself.

"Aww… I think I feel my skin blushing… not that I have skin to blush with," Brook said laughing.

But Luffy looked back at him and asked, "You guys mentioned some pirate hunter, so what's he like?"

Once again, Zoro's one eye widen at that. Did this mean that Luffy purposely set out to meet him? That it wasn't just a chance meeting?

"But why would he ask about you?" Franky asked, glancing at Zoro, "You were a pirate hunter, not a pirate… that's a big difference."

He shrugged, not bothering to say anything, though truthfully he didn't know what to say.

"Oh, you mean Zoro?" Coby asked. "Last I heard he was being held prisoner at some Marine base."

"Wait, you were held captive?" Chopper cried out, unable to believe that his hero had once been locked up.

"Hey, if I wanted too I could've escaped whenever I wanted to!" Zoro snapped. This was only half true however. If he wanted to, he could've left without a word before he was tied up… but once he was fixed to that stupid post and left for three weeks, he didn't realize just how weak he had become.

"Really?" Chopper asked, admiration in his eyes.

"But how'd you get caught in the first place?" Usopp asked, "Like how you were caught back at Fishman Island?"

But before he could think of an answer, Luffy sighed. "Oh, well. Weakling huh?"

That alone was something that Sanji couldn't help but laugh. "He thinks you're weak Moss-Head," he laughed.

"What does that make you then, crap-cook?" Zoro snarled back. "Cause I can beat you blindfolded and handcuffed!"

Sanji's eyes were set ablaze as he glared at him. "What'd you just say?" he yelled.

"You heard me!" he yelled back, his thumb instinctively flicking a sword out.

"Can you two grow up for five minutes!?" Nami demanded hotly. "Seriously though, how were you captured Zoro?"

"That's all in the past so what's it matter?" he yelled same time that Coby yelled.

"No, you're so wrong!" he screamed, moving forward and explaining, "He's a violent as a demon and three times as horrifying!"

"That I can't disagree with," Sanji said grinning. Zoro growled, wondering if Luffy would let him get away with killing Sanji. He was just a cook after all, you can find one anywhere… they could always get a new one.

Coby blinked as if realizing what Luffy just said and asked carefully, "Why are you asking about him anyway?"

Luffy only grinned back as he answered, "I figure if he's good enough I'll ask him to join my crew!"

Once again, Coby's mouth fell open and he froze up—just like how he had done when Luffy told him about his dream of becoming the King of the Pirates.

"Chasing him down is just plan reckless!" Coby yelled at him.

"You never know he might jump at the chance to join!" Luffy said optimistically.

"Not quite," Zoro said softly to himself. He never really thought about it. It was just the idea of becoming a pirate never once came to his mind. He never once called himself a bounty hunter… he was, and would always be first and foremost, a swordsman. But it was strange now that here he was and was proud to call himself a Straw Hat Pirate.

"He's a bad enough guy that the Marines caught him!" Coby shouted out and began to shout out how impossible it would be, much like before, and once again it ended the same way.

"OW! Why'd you hit me?" he complained, eyes watering in pain.

"Cause I felt like it!" Luffy answered bluntly and the darkness appeared again.

"Interesting," Robin said softly, not really seeing the darkness as they thought about what they had seen. "Merely because of a rumor he heard, he went to go find you and see for himself what kind of person you were."

"So that's really what happened?" Usopp asked, "Luffy went out to find you and you joined?"

"I'm afraid that it's a little more complicated than that," Zoro confessed.

"You did have quite the reputation of being a brutal killer back in the East Blue," Nami reminded him.

"Hey," he said in annoyance. "I've done a lot of things I'm not proud of, but I don't regret anything I did…"

Well… there was _one_ thing…

"So how did you and Luffy-san meet, Zoro-san?" Brook asked interested. He had always known that Zoro had been the first to join Luffy's crew, and he was now burning with curiosity to know how such a strong friendship had first started. He hadn't forgotten about the sacrifice that Zoro had been willing to make back at Thriller Bark, and he had always been struck by the amount of trust the two seemed to have in each other.

He didn't have to wonder long though, for the sun came back and they were still out at sea. Luffy was sitting up on the figurehead of the little boat while Coby held onto the sail.

"What a day! It's gorgeous!" Luffy called out, stretching out and breathing in the salty air.

"If we continue on this heading, we should reach the Marine base in no time at all," Coby told him, looking happier than they had seen him yet.

"Wow, Coby, you're great out here," Luffy said, looking back at him with a grin, "You mean we're actually going to reach the place we originally set out for?"

"Why does he sound so surprised?" Nami sighed, knowing that her captain's sense of directions was almost as messed up as Zoro. Really, how can any people who are so aware of their surroundings, be unable to tell which way was north or south?

"Of course, it's nothing. I'm just using the skills that every sailor should have," Coby answered as Luffy laughed up on the figurehead.

"You would think so," Nami sighed, rolling her eyes.

"We'd be lost without you, Nami-swan…" Sanji swooned as he stared at her love-struck.

"Don't I know it," she said, "I'm amazed that you guys could last long without any idea of where you're going."

"At least we're not greedy thieves like someone I could mention," Zoro snapped back.

"Take that back, Moss-head! Sanji threatened. "No one dares insults my Nami like that!"

"Just speaking the truth idiot cook," he answered.

"I'll kill you," Sanji snarled.

"I'd love to see you try," Zoro yelled back.

"Come on, both of you," Usopp said, trying to get some peace between them. "Let's just watch the memories. If we keep going like this, it looks like we might be able to see how we all joined."

"Ohh… really?" Chopper asked, eyes bright.

"Now that would be amazing to see!" Brook called out excitedly, hoping that he would get to see more. He regretted the fact that he had only spent a short amount of time with the Straw Hats before they were separated. He always wished that he had such a strong connection between them. Though he knew it wasn't the same thing, he hoped that by watching these, he could gain a closer understanding of them all. He had already learned more than he ever thought about his captain… and though it had been hard… he felt honored to have seen what kind of a man he chose to follow.

"You know there's nothing to be so giggly about," Coby scolded him, fixing his glasses as Luffy gazed back at him. "Because at the Marine base they're holding the great pirate hunter… Roronoa Zoro."

Zoro smiled proudly at his title, but less so when Coby finished, "This is the man who has diced up his bounties like an animal bent on carnage. A blood-thirsty beast! He's been called nothing less than a living, breathing demon in human form!"

"Who are they calling a demon?" he demanded.

"Well, he's possessed by something, but I'm can't tell if it's a demon or not," Usopp said, looking at Zoro, who glared at him through his one eye.

"What was that?" he snarled as Usopp felt his courage fade.

"Nothing," he squeaked, fading back as Zoro looked back to the scene. But Usopp couldn't help but feel as though Zoro's reputation of a devil wasn't as far-fetched as people thought.

"Demon?" Luffy repeated, looking back to the sea, shielding his eyes against the sun as he looked for any signs of an island. "Sounds cool!"

"How could you think being a demon is cool?" Coby demanded fearfully.

Zoro was wishing he had a drink. He had always been proud of the reputation he worked so hard for… he never once thought about joining a pirate crew to help him achieve his dream. But if he had to be honest with himself… he was glad that he joined. Though it didn't have such a promising start, it soon changed…

He had once traveled around the East Blue with Johnny and Yosaku… they helped to ease a loneliness he had in him that he had been carrying around since he lost Kuina. It had been fun to travel with those two for a short time… but soon they decided to go their separate ways and he had returned to his lonely journey on his own.

He didn't think much about it at the time however… he was used to being on his own. He spent most of his childhood training to be the best. Though he did get along with many of the boys at the dojo, as well as his Sensei, he never really had someone who he felt he could trust completely.

He stared up at the blue sky, wondering about so many things—it was funny how this one random meeting had changed all that. As soon as he joined, he felt something he had never felt before… friendship… and the more he hung out with Luffy, the more the rubberbrain began to grown on him. And for the first time in years, that lonely feeling disappeared and he felt a sense a peace on board with this crew that he couldn't remember having before.

He wondered what would've happened if Alvida never let his name slip. Though he had a very good idea… he'd be killed by those corrupted Marines. He smiled to himself, a gentle look coming over his face. But of course no one noticed this as they were watching Luffy… except for Robin. Who was also smiling at him, as if she knew what was going through his mind.

"He's been known to brutally slaughter his victim before he drags them in to collect their bounties," Coby went on. "Anyone who had been crazy enough to stand up to him had ended up cut to pieces!"

"Like Zoro would do that," Chopper said furious.

"Actually," Zoro said evenly, "That's about right."

The color in Usopp's and Chopper's faces disappeared as they looked at him. Usopp actually moved a little bit away from him.

"Well, I'm looking for strong crew members," Luffy told him, "And it sounds like he's strong."

"Just what I heard," Coby gulped as Zoro grinned proudly.

"But why would he be in prison?" Luffy asked, "If he hunts pirates wouldn't the Marines want him out in the world hunting…?"

"Well, that's because… ah… well…" Coby stuttered, unable to think of an excuse.

"Yeah, why was that?" Franky asked Zoro

"I'm sure that you'll find out," he said in annoyance. "Just watch and leave me alone."

"Touchy," Franky commented as Coby finally yelled out, "I don't know why, but I'm sure that the Marines must've had a reason! Maybe he killed someone important or something! It doesn't matter! I think that you should just forget about it!"

"If he doesn't want to go, why is he guiding Luffy there?" Usopp asked.

"He probably feels that he owes him a lot, which he does," Sanji explained. "If he never met Luffy, he'd still be stuck on that pirate ship as a cabin boy. He knows that Luffy wants to meet Moss-Head… not sure why he would…" he added as Zoro growled at him. "But he probably felt that it was the least he could do. Besides, it wasn't like Coby had anywhere else to go really. And he could've tried to enlist when he got to the Marine base."

No one could argue with that as Luffy was now waving his arms energetically in the air, having spotted the island.

"Also… because Luffy-san is his friend," Brook added as he watched the anxious look on Coby's face as he gulped and turned the sails in so that they could catch the wind. "And isn't that what friends are supposed to do?"

"Well said," Franky said, feeling a little teary-eyed at that.

Luffy was so full of energy, he was causing the boat to rock back and forth dangerously, and Coby had to cling to the side to keep them from tipping. But Luffy didn't notice as they kept getting going. Once they were close enough, they could get a good look at the Marine Base. The island was made up of tall cliffs, and the town was built right into it. At the top stood the Base, towering over them all, and separated by a wall that reminded them of Goa—thought much smaller.

"So that's the island where you were?" Usopp asked in surprise.

"Yep," Zoro answered bitterly, "I only planned on staying for a couple days, but I ended up staying for three weeks."

"Do we want to know why?" Franky asked him.

"WOW!" Luffy cried out, eyes wide, "It's so big!"

Coby was staring up at the Marine Base, his own eyes bright and as big as coins as he stared up in wonderment.

"Don't see why he would want to be a Marine in the first place," Sanji sighed as they followed them pulling into the docks. Luffy didn't even wait to tie the boat up as he jumped ashore, staring around in excitement.

"We're here!" he cried out happily, now jumping up and down as Coby quickly tied the boat up himself, and followed after him. "The Marine Base City!"

And so they began following the two through the crowded market, wondering just when and how they would meet up with Zoro. Speaking of which, Coby was still following him, trying to convince Luffy of all of the reasons why he shouldn't recruit the swordsman even if he did find him.

But Luffy wasn't listening to them as he looked at the food. "Well, I haven't made up my mind yet," he confessed, "I gotta see if he's a good guy."

"He's in prison because he's obviously not!" Coby screamed out, stopping dead and yelling in the street.

"Oh, I tend to disagree with that," Robin said darkly, her hatred for the World Government burning like a fire inside her.

"Yeah, the government doesn't care if your innocent or not," Franky growled, still burning at the injustice of Tom being taken away just because he built the Pirate King's ship. He glanced at Robin, knowing the injustice she had been forced to go through.

"If the world sees you as an enemy, that's reason enough for them," Zoro sighed, remembering those miserable three weeks trapped on this island.

"Hey is that guy Zoro around here?" Luffy asked a man after he bought himself a pear. As if he spoke a curse, they all jumped back in fear, terror on each and every one of their faces.

"That's the usual reaction when someone hears you're around," Sanji offered, and Zoro responded by a sharp glare.

"Zoro why is everyone here afraid of you?" Chopper asked in confusion, not liking the fear in everyone's eyes.

"Don't look at me," he growled, "I hadn't done anything to them."

"Could've fooled me," Franky said staring around them, "You think that you attacked the city or something."

"Maybe we shouldn't mention the name Zoro around here, okay?" Coby whispered to Luffy quietly. Naturally, Luffy paid no attention as he set off again, Coby right on his heels.

"Let's head to the base and check it out," he went on as if nothing happened, "You wanna be a Marine, right?"

"Well, of course I do Luffy, but I really don't think I'm ready yet," Coby said timidly.

"That's for sure," Franky said. This little guy was practically afraid of his own shadow—he didn't stand a chance against some of the harsh training that the Marines went through.

"From what I've heard the man in charge of this place is named Captain Morgan," Coby finished. But the words were no sooner out of his mouth and townspeople who heard, leapt away in alarm once again—just like they did when Zoro's name was mentioned.

"Huh?" Brook asked, looking confused.

"Now everyone's freaking out about this Morgan guy?" Sanji asked in surprise. Just say a name in this town and the people freak.

"This town is such a weird place!" Luffy laughed as he walked on.

"I think this whole place is cracking up," Usopp said as Luffy laughed.

"That was odd, I mean I get that they're scared of Zoro, but why'd they flip when I mentioned the marine captain's name?" Coby asked, now looking completely lost. "I don't know I've got a bad feeling about this."

"You aren't the only one," Nami said frowning, as she thought back to when she visited this place. Now that she thought about it, she did recall hearing Zoro's name… suddenly her eyes widened. She remembered! She remembered how some random person came charging up and punched some idiot in the face when he talked about executing Zoro… straining her memory she could vaguely recall seeing that straw hat…

She couldn't believe it. Luffy was here too? It seemed that she kept crossing paths with him before she had any idea who he was! What was going on here?

"Between me and the Marine Captain, the people here hate him more," Zoro explained, interrupting her thoughts.

"I think I've heard of him," Robin said, frowning as if from some long-lost memory, "Are they talking about Ax-Hand Morgan?"

"Yeah, that's him," Zoro said darkly.

"Odd nickname, why'd they call him that?" Franky asked.

"Because he had a giant ax instead of an arm," he answered, rolling his eyes. But they were suddenly falling behind Luffy and Coby, and went charging on ahead after them until they stopped at the Marine Base's gates near the top of the island.

"This looks like the place," Luffy said as they stood at the entrance.

"Really?" Sanji asked sarcastically, looking up at the Marine's symbol on the front door.

"I made it," Coby said with tears in his eyes. He'd started to say more, about his goodbyes to Luffy but he was already climbing up the wall and looking over at the area.

"And he's already causing trouble," Nami stated.

"Well, he wouldn't be Luffy he wasn't," Usopp sighed.

"Where's the footholds?" he complained loudly as Coby screamed at him to get down.

"Now, where's this demon?" Luffy asked cheerfully, still looking around.

"He's the only person I know who would be happy at the thought of meeting a demon," Usopp said exasperated.

"Geez, what's with people?" Zoro asked in deep annoyance, knowing that he was about to get a good look at himself here… though not in a good light.

"They wouldn't keep him out in the open," Coby said sweatdropped, "He's probably locked away in a prison cell underground."

"Not quite," Zoro said darkly. He would've preferred that… at the least, he'd be out of that hot sun and rain.

"Wait, if you weren't held in a cell, then where were you?" Chopper asked just as something caught Luffy's eye.

"There he is!" Luffy exclaimed in excitement as he jumped off the wall and ran to the other end of the base. "I'm gonna get closer!"

Zoro sighed, knowing that the cook was going to have a field day with this, he grumpily followed, he wasn't going to like what he saw. Coby gaped at Luffy before following him, telling him that it couldn't be Zoro.

But Luffy had jumped up to the wall much farther around and was leaning over the edge to look at something in the yard. "Coby look!" he said as Coby jumped up and struggled to get himself to look over to see what Luffy was talking about.

"I'm telling you, he's not…" but he gasped as he looked out.

Now the rest of the Straw Hats were interested and casually walked through the thick wall to get a good look. As soon as they saw him, Chopper, Brook, and Usopp gasped like Coby had. There was no doubt about it. It was Zoro…

He was tied to a cross-shaped post in the center of the yard with the hot sun beating down on him… he was filthy, and looked exhausted as he hung there… very thin with his black bandana overshadowing his eyes so that they couldn't see his expression. Though weak and obviously starved, they could sense that there was something very dangerous about this man.

"EHHHH! ZORO! WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU?!" he screamed out, running over to get a good look at him. "You mean you've been tied to this post all this time?"

"Ten more days and it would've been a month," he answered calmly as he also walked forward to get a good look at his past self.

"You were tied here for three weeks?!" Nami screamed at him.

"What did you live on?!" Usopp gasped out.

"They gave me enough water to keep me alive," Zoro explained, as he stopped walking, standing just a foot away from himself. "But the rest was all determination and spirit. Nothing else."

He was standing in front of his past self, and he couldn't think of a more surreal experience. If he had to be honest with himself… he looked like utter crap. Looking at him here and at how far he had come, he could hardly believe that this was the same person he had been over two years ago.

If someone had told him here that he would be here in the New World with a crew of pirates, he'd told them to go to hell. Was this half-dead man… really him?

Sanji stood back, taking a good look at the Zoro here. To go almost a month without eating…? To him, that was torture of the worst kind. He knew better than anyone what it was like to almost starve to death. He only had enough food for five days… how he had stretched it out for twenty until he only had a moldy piece of bread left. He gulped at the memory, violent flashbacks to that god-forsaken rock in the middle of the ocean coming back.

"They didn't give you any food?" Sanji asked, surprising Zoro, who had expected him to start taunting at how awful he looked.

"No," he answered darkly, "Just a mouthful of water once in awhile. Nothing else."

"It's a miracle you weren't anything but bones by the end of this!" Brook cried in amazement.

"But why were you sticking around?" Usopp said. "All you had to do was cut those ropes and you'd be free!"

"Do you see me with my swords?" he asked in annoyance.

"But you still could've escaped," Nami said, unable to believe that these ropes would be enough to hold him back.

Luffy obviously thought that too as he asked Coby, "If we just untie those ropes he can just walk away?"

"Oh, don't be such an idiot Luffy!" Coby yelled in fright. "There's no telling what a bandit like him will do if you let him go! He might just kill us both!"

Zoro rolled his eye. Now he wasn't known for his social skills, but he wouldn't go and kill someone who would help him.

"Don't worry, I'm strong," Luffy said unconcerned. "I can protect us."

Coby was crying, obviously thinking that Luffy lost his mind. But the more that Zoro thought about it, the more he began to wonder that if he and Luffy had to fight, which one of them would win? He and Luffy did have a 'disagreement' back at Whiskey Peak, but come on… that was way back then and they didn't even finish it. Though he knew all Luffy's weaknesses, the same held true to Luffy… plus the captain was so unpredictable that it would be impossible to know.

He grinned to himself, wondering if the two of them could ever have a real fight like that someday… not to the death of course. But because they would probably be each other's most dangerous opponents.

Just then, his past self sensed that he was being watched and looked up to see through the present-day Zoro and to the wall where Luffy and Coby were. "You two," he growled at them, clearly irritated. His eyes were exhausted, but they still glared fiercely up at them, hearing Coby squeal in fear. "You're an eyesore, get lost."

"There are those people skills hard at work," Franky muttered with sarcasm. Zoro didn't look at him as he continued to stare at his past self. But he could hear Coby behind him, once again begging Luffy to just leave. "Luffy trust me, there's no way you'll survive with someone like him on your crew!" he cried out.

The rest of the Straw Hats however were taken aback at the thoughtful expression on Luffy's face. Normally, it was easy to tell what was going on inside his head, but here… he had the perfect poker face as he looked at Zoro.

"Even if he agrees to join your crew, he'll always be your enemy, your life will be in danger," Coby continued on, but still Luffy wasn't budging as he looked.

"Wish I knew what he was thinking," Franky said, glancing from Luffy to the two Zoro's… but as his eyes found the present-day Zoro, he saw that their Zoro was wearing the exact same expression that Luffy had here. Like they were both thinking the exact same thing as they looked over the prisoner here.

"Zoro?" Chopper asked, also noticing the strange look on his face. "What is it?"

Zoro didn't answer; he just kept looking, lost in his own thoughts. Their attention was so focused on him that, at first, they didn't notice that someone else had appeared. Coby had stopped talking and Robin looked back in time to see that a little girl had climbed up besides them.

"Who's that?" she asked, and everyone, including Zoro looked back to see her. She was a cute little girl with big black eyes and her brown hair tied back with pigtails as she looked to Luffy and Coby. She put a finger to her lips, silently telling them to be quiet as she glanced around cautiously and lowered a rope down the other side and climbed down.

Coby had been so stunned, that it wasn't until she had reached the ground on the other side did he snap out of it and screamed for Luffy to stop her as she ran to Zoro, holding a tiny package to her chest.

The Straw Hats all moved back so that they could watch her come up to him with a kind smile.

"What'd you want?" Zoro asked her impatiently.

"I thought you might be getting hungry now? So I made you a couple rice balls," the girl told him, as she held up the wrapped package and began to untie it.

"You've got a death wish kid?" Zoro said bluntly. "Just scram."

"But you haven't eaten anything the whole time you've been tied up," the girl said persistently as held up the two rice balls for him. "Here, I've never really made them before…" she went on so that he could see them, "but I did my best and I think they're fine."

"They look good enough to eat," Usopp said, suddenly starving.

Sanji however was looking at the hungry look in Zoro's eyes as he stared at the food before he turned his nose up at them. "Listen kid I'm not hungry! Now stop irritating me and get out of here!"

"You really wanna die here?" Sanji scolded him. "You may think you can last, and maybe you can, but you should never disrespect food."

"Believe me, I wanted to eat them," Zoro said in annoyance. "But if she had helped me, she could've been killed."

"Killed?" Robin repeated in surprise.

"Wait for it and you'll see," he answered, looking at the Rika's hurt expression.

"But…" she started and Zoro seemed to lose his temper.

"Do not make me kick your ass little girl!" he yelled at her.

"What can you do tied there?" Franky asked, eyebrows raised.

"You could've told her to leave a little more gently, Zoro-san," Brook reminded him.

"I said to wait for it," he growled, and right on cue, the obnoxious voice drifted over the courtyard.

"Now now, no one likes a bully," called the familiar, taunting voice that made him want to break something. Everyone, memory and not, glanced up to see a skinny and lanky-looking young man with light blond hair shaped like an oval on top of his head coming towards them. He had a smug smile on his face as he tugged at the collar of his shirt—acting as if he owned the town.

"Who's that?" Brook asked.

"That would be Helmeppo," Zoro said rolling his eye.

"Wait, that same Helmeppo that we met with Coby at Water 7?" Chopper asked in surprise.

"Wow, you'd never guess it," Sanji said impressed. "A lot can change in a short amount of time."

The Zoro that was tied to the post gave them all an angry look as he slowly came towards him. "Roronoa Zoro, you seem to be handling this well," Helmeppo said still in that mocking tone, "Don't you agree?"

"Look now there's another weird guy," Luffy said from where they were on the wall. The Straw Hats moved back towards them so that they could hear.

"That's great. He must be with the Marines," Coby said smiling, "Now we know the girl'll be safe."

Zoro snorted, knowing full well that girl could've gotten hurt thanks to that idiot. Coby needed to wake up and see that just because you're considered a Marine, makes you far from a saint.

Helmeppo walked over at the girl, looking at the rice balls. "Oh, lookie. Some tasty rice balls," he said and he snatched on up and took a big bite out of it.

"HEY!" she cried out, "That's not for you!"

"Oh, he knew," Zoro said in annoyance, looking angry at what was going to happen next. Helmeppo stopped and made a face of disgust as he spit it out.

"Too sweet!" he screamed dropping the rest of the food to the ground.

"He's not…!" Sanji roared, looking furious that he would let a perfectly good rice ball go to waste.

"He did," Zoro answered dully as Helmeppo screamed, "They're packed with sugar! You're supposed to use salt you idiot salt!"

"But I… I thought it would taste better sweet," she said, blinking in surprise, not really understanding what she did wrong. And then Sanji was burning in rage when he watched Helmeppo knocked the other ball to the ground and stomped it into the dirt.

"No, stop!" the girl pleaded, trying to grab it, but couldn't get close without her risking her fingers getting stomped on. "I worked so hard!"

"That's terrible!" Chopper yelled, his heart going out to that little girl.

"He's the only bully around here," Usopp agreed, looking like he wanted nothing more than to have a few words with that jerk. When he finally stopped destroying the food, they looked to see nothing but a pile of rice and mud with a giant shoeprint on it.

The girl sat there on the ground staring at it, tears welling up in her eyes. "But I…" she choked out, "I worked so hard… to make those…" hearing those words only served to make Sanji even angrier than before, making him long to break this guy's face in.

"While it may not have the same taste as a normal rice ball would, it would still have been good to eat," Sanji said darkly, furious that anyone would disrespect food like that in front of the one who worked to make it. That was the ultimate insult to any chief! To throw away food they worked so hard to prepare. He remembered all the mistakes he made back when he was still learning how to cook. Putting sugar in a rice ball was minimal compared to some of the mistakes that he made! At least a sweet rice ball could still be enjoyed. The things he made were barely edible… and even then he had eaten every last bite of it no matter how terrible it was.

He could tell that this girl put her heart and soul into making this food for a starving man, and not only that, but they were her _first_ rice balls. And to see them treated like garbage must truly felt like a slap in the face for her.

"Too bad," Helmeppo sighed, looking like he couldn't have cared less for her feelings as he took out a piece of paper from his jacket. "You must not have read the notice that was posted. '_Those who assist criminals in any way will be executed. Signed Marine Captain Morgan'_."

The girl turned pale and looked up at him in fear as they all glared at him.

"It seems even little brats fear my daddy?" Helmeppo asked cockily.

"His daddy?" Luffy's voice repeated from behind them.

"So that guy's father is Captain Morgan?" Coby repeated in astonishment.

"That doesn't mean that he can go around and treat people like this!" Chopper cried out furiously, wishing that he could comfort the girl.

"But didn't he say that they'd be executed?" Nami said, suddenly anxious for the little girl. "She did try to feed Zoro."

"What?!" Usopp cried out fearfully, "you don't think that he'd…?"

"He'd have no honor as a man if he do something like that to a child!" Brook cried out, his hand on his sword.

"He doesn't," Zoro growled. "Though he was a jerk, I don't think he'd go that far. Watch…"

Helmeppo turned towards one of his men. "You, toss this kid out right now."

The soldier suddenly stepped back, looking terrified at the order. When he didn't move, Helmeppo grabbed him by the front of his shirt and yelled, "I said throw her over the wall soldier! Now if you're not gonna follow my orders, I'll tell my father."

"Yes, sir, I'll do it!" the marine stuttered as he walked towards the girl.

"Oh, come on," Franky cried out. "We sure this is the same punk we met back at Water 7? That guy at least had the guts to take on Zoro before. This one…?" he trailed off as he watched the soldier picked the girl gently up and quietly told her to curl up into a ball as he tossed her over.

Screaming in horror, Chopper went running through the wall, looking ready to grab her… but Luffy was already way ahead of him. He jumped, stretching out his arms, he grabbed her and held her tightly as they both hit the ground hard.

"Thank goodness," Nami sighed in relief, as Coby jumped down and ran over to them as the girl sat up, thanking him. "For a second, I thought that she was going to get hurt."

Zoro didn't say anything, but a part of him was also greatly relieved, he didn't want that kid to get hurt because she only wanted to help him.

"Seriously, is this really the same guy?" Franky repeated to himself, scratching his head with a massive hand, "Could've fooled me."

"What a bilge rat," Sanji growled, wishing he could've kicked him when he met him.

Zoro didn't say a word as he went back inside the wall to watch himself growling out insults at Helmeppo who cackled.

"You're just dead set on staying alive aren't you?" he asked.

Zoro raised his eyebrows. Of course he was… because the alternate _was_ to die…

"That's right," past Zoro snarled at him. "I'm gonna make it through the month without any problems."

This only caused Helmeppo to laugh again. "Right, good luck with that," he sneered as he walked away.

"Only ten days left," Zoro called after him.

"Oh, you still assume you'll make it to the end of those ten days," Helmeppo replied smugly as he left the prison yard. Once the other Straw Hats had made sure that the girl was alright, they realized that both Luffy and Zoro were gone and went back inside through the wall to see what was happening now.

"Hey," Usopp called, "Where that jerk go?"

"He left," Zoro answered him bluntly, his eye going to Luffy who was standing directly in front of the crippled memory version of Zoro. They both looked hard at each other, as if sizing each other up.

"What was going through your mind here?" Robin asked him curiously.

"Dunno," Zoro confessed, trying to think back. He remembered thinking that he had no idea who this twerp was, and he wasn't interested. But he was curious that he had come in after seeing the little girl get thrown out… at the same time, he couldn't help but feel as if he was on display and anger had boiled in the pit of his stomach as he watched the kid looking at him.

While at the same time, he remembered thinking that this kid wasn't like anyone he'd met before… what it was, he wasn't sure. But he was stuck by how unafraid that the punk was of him. Luffy honestly didn't seem afraid of him. It could've been that he was tied to that post and half dead… but still… that had never happened before.

"So, I hear you're a bad guy?" Luffy finally asked, breaking the silence.

"You're still here?" Zoro asked in a bored tone, clearly telling him to get lost.

"You're stuck out here for all the world to see and nothing. Are you really that strong?" Luffy asked bluntly.

"Bet you loved that," Franky said as Zoro ignored him. Because the sad fact was, he could see what Luffy meant… he looked far from impressive here.

"Mind your own business!" Zoro snapped as Luffy sighed and moved closer, still looking over him curiously. It was hard to tell what was going on through either of these two minds.

Luffy suddenly smiled. "If I were you, I'd probably starve to death in three days."

"Probably," Sanji sighed, his hand in his hair. "Even when the guy's out cold, he's sleep eating…"

"I've got more spirit than you could ever have," Zoro retorted, giving him an evil smirk. "Which is how I'm gonna survive this ordeal. This I swear."

Luffy just shook his head as he turned. "Ha, what a weirdo," he said, about to leave. But as he took a few steps away, Zoro suddenly called him back.

"What were you going to do?" Usopp asked interested, not liking the wild look in the starved Zoro's face.

Zoro didn't look at him, feeling embarrassed at this, but not regretting what he did. He watched as his past self gazed down at the rice ball, asking for Luffy to pick it up for him.

Looking surprised at the request, Luffy did so, picking up what was left of it. "You're gonna eat this?" he asked, looking over the rice, and picking out a few pebbles. "Cause it's mostly a ball of mud."

"Shut and give it me! NOW!" Zoro shouted impatiently, not sounding like his usual calm self that he was using before. Luffy stared at him, along with the other Straw Hats, before he threw it into his mouth. At once, Zoro swallowed every bit of it, choking on the mud and dirt.

"Should've listened to me," Luffy said as Zoro composed himself.

"It was good," Zoro whispered, surprising them all again. They couldn't see his face, but Zoro's voice had gratitude as he said, "Thanks for the food."

"Oh…" Brook said, feeling touched by the scene, his hand over his ribcage.

Luffy's eyes suddenly softened and he was smiling in an oddly kind way… as if seeing something that no one else could see. And that was the last thing that any of them saw as the scene faded away, leaving them all trying to digest what they just witnessed.

"Wow, you were willing to eat that?" Chopper asked him, his eyes still bright.

Zoro didn't say anything, they knew that he was desperate enough. And more than anything, he was touched that kid had been willing to bring food for him like that. Anyway, he didn't want to give that idiot's son the satisfaction that he got away with that.

Sanji didn't say anything else either, but he was truthfully unable to find anything to say to that. Knowing that girl's food did end up going into his mouth, and still saying that it was good would mean the world to her. But then, why the hell does Moss-Head still say that his own cooking was crap?! He never once got a compliment from the green-haired idiot and felt anger burning again, but Robin was asking something else.

"But they didn't say how you got there?" she asked him. "Why were you standing there and taking all that?"

"Yeah, if you hunted pirates, you think that they'd be grateful for you and leave you alone," Brook asked.

"I had my reasons," he snapped at them, "Probably why Rika wanted to help me in the first place."

"Rika?" Usopp repeated before understanding, "Oh, you mean that little girl?"

"Yeah," Zoro said, "I'm sure you're about to find out…"

And that was when the scene came back. They were all piled in what looked like an alley with Luffy and Coby sitting with the same girl. Luffy had just sat down on a barrel as he told her how Zoro ate her food.

"Really?" Rika cried out, her eyes wide with happiness.

"That's right," Luffy nodded smiling at her ecstatic expression. "He ate every last grain of rice there was."

"That's great," she said in relief, truly touched by that.

"Yeah, you just made her day," Sanji answered, breathing out more smoke, feeling an odd sense of gratitude that Zoro had done something like that for her.

"Was it really good?" Chopper asked, not sure why anyone would want to eat a rice ball off the ground when it had been stepped on.

"When you go three weeks without eating, you're willing to devour just about anything," he told him firmly. "I had to eat it… why? Because I'm a survivor! It really wasn't that bad anyway… tough to swallow, but all the sugar she put in covered up the taste of mud."

"I wonder if Zoro really is as evil as everyone thinks that he is," Coby said softly to himself, stunned by what Luffy had just told him. "Still, everyone says he's a beast."

"He's not!" Rika defended loudly, looking angry for half a second before she looked down at her hand and finished, "He's good… because… he got himself punished… for us…"

Zoro felt his turn a little red at that, as he looked away.

"Zoro-san?" Brook asked, looking at him, "What does she mean?"

Refusing to answer him, he was saved when Luffy asked what she was talking about. And that was how she explained what was going on. Almost a month ago, Helmeppo had owned a vicious dog that he brought with him everywhere as it terrorized the whole town. But when the dog entered her mother's restaurant and started scaring everyone, Rika had enough and tried to get rid of it herself. That was when the animal tried to kill her… however; she was saved by Zoro, who just happened to have been in there enjoying a meal. After he had killed the hound, Helmeppo saw this as a crime towards himself, so he ordered Zoro to stay imprisoned for thirty days otherwise he would execute Rika and her mother. And Zoro accepted the offer…

"It's been three weeks since that day. Helmeppo keeps punching and kicking him while he's been tied up," Rika said, sounding upset, "He's being so unfair!" That was when she started to cry, "I don't know… I don't know how to help him."

"So that's it…" Robin said, smiling at Zoro, who refused to look at her or anyone else.

"I can see why you're upset," Coby whispered, as all this sunk in. Like his dreams of becoming a brave Marine were shriveling up as they spoke.

"Wow… that's truly selfless, Zoro-san," Brook whispered, staring at him with new respect.

"That was SUPER thing to do, bro!" Franky called out proudly as Chopper hugged his leg. He could've just left, but he chose to stay and risk his life for a little girl and her mother… it doesn't get more selfless than that.

"Who would've thought that there was something in you that wasn't out for blood," Sanji offered.

"That's a nasty way to give a compliment," Zoro glared at him. But he let it go. He could admit it… the truth was, he _was_ a born killer capable of showing no mercy during combat… and he had killed before. However those people he killed had deserved it… but a little girl who didn't do anything wrong didn't deserve to die. If he stood back and did nothing, his own honor would've been at stake.

"But what I don't understand is why you believed he would keep a promise like this?" Robin asked him. Zoro was a very untrusting individual… almost as much as she was. It seemed unheard of that he would trust someone like that to keep his word.

"Didn't have a choice," he answered bitterly. "I didn't think that they would be low enough to do something like that."

But before she could think of something to say, there were crashes going on inside the building behind them. Rika's eyes were wide and she went running in, crying out anxiously for her mother. Suddenly having a bad feeling about this, they all followed, but Nami was in the front—wondering if this was where she would see it…

It was a comfortable-looking little restaurant inside, and there was a woman who looked a lot like Rika, who could only be her mother, was standing behind the bar. She was looking fearfully at Helmeppo who had sat down and put his table up on the table, messing up a bowl of fruit.

"I'm hungry, bring us whatever you have and keep the check for yourself!" he called obnoxiously. "And bring me a bottle of your finest moonshine or whatever crap you serve. And put some speed to it lady, I don't have all day."

"That piece of shit," Sanji snarled, shaking. He was having a flashback at those damn bandits and how they gave Makino such a hard time. "How dare they treat a lady like this?"

But Nami was looking around, wondering if what she remembered was right. And there she was just a few tables away. She was sitting there with a glass of wine in her hands as she listened in to him.

"It's Nami!" Chopper cried out also noticing it.

"Yohohoho," Brook said in astonishment. "So you made it out of that attack alright?"

"Yeah, I had worse days than that," Nami said, walking over so that she could get a good long look at herself.

"Nami?" Robin asked, but she didn't answer her as she bent down low to get a better look at her past self. It was in much the same way that Zoro was as he had stared when he saw himself in the yard. It must've been a truly strange experience for them to see them here staring at themselves.

Helmeppo just laughed as they poured him some wine, turning the attention back on him. "I've sure been thinking about something interesting to do since I've been bored out of my skull here," he told them all, and that was when he dropped the bombshell. "I've decided to execute Zoro tomorrow. Look forward to it everyone."

"HE'S WHAT?" Chopper screamed out in panic.

"That jerk!" Usopp also yelled. "Three weeks and he's just going to kill him off?!"

Zoro shook his head at his own stupidity. He should've been able to guess that they would pull something like this. He thought back to all the punishments that idiot had dealt him while he was tied up. If he had this kind of power then, he would've sliced that idiot up to pieces… he wanted to.

"After everything you did, he was just going to break his promise just like that?" Brook asked him at once.

He shrugged. "There's always a chance he was just joking, but I highly doubt that," he answered.

"He wouldn't joke about something like this," Robin sighed. "He honestly means it."

"He has no honor!" Brook yelled heatedly, "To go back on his word like that!"

"You aren't the only one who thinks that," Sanji stated, as Luffy's eyes turned dangerous. There was a deep anger burning in them, leaving no trace for mercy. And then instinctively, he went charging ahead, and before anyone else could tell what happened, Luffy punched him so hard that he was sent flying across the room and smacked against the wall.

"'Bout time someone hit him," Franky said, grateful that someone shut him up.

"That's what I call getting what you deserve," Usopp said as he and Chopper both cheered Luffy on, hoping for another punch.

"You… you just hit me!?" Helmeppo demanded as he grabbed his swollen cheek, sitting up, unable to believe it.

"I think that his brain was damaged when he hit the wall, or what was left of it anyway," Sanji smirked. "What else did he think just happened?"

"How can he not see that coming?" Nami demanded, smiling.

"Yes, there's only so much that a person can take before they finally snap and fight back," Robin agreed softly.

But it was clear that Luffy was far from done, he moved forward, looking ready to give him another attack—and probably would have if Coby hadn't run over and restrained him. But knowing how strong Luffy was, they knew that he could've easily have thrown him off, but stayed where he was as he continued to glared down at Helmepoo.

"Luffy, no!" Coby pleaded with him, trying to hold him back, "You can't hit him!"

"Too late for that," Franky pointed out, "He already did."

"This guy's scum!" Luffy growled as everyone stared at them, stunned that anyone would have the guts to attack him.

"You actually hit me," Helmeppo yelled like a little kid. "I'm Captain Morgan's son you know!"

"And he's the son of Dragon," Zoro pointed out, with a shrug, "But that's hardly the case here… using your father's name to fight is a coward's way out."

"Because daddy won't be there forever," Sanji agreed, pulling his cigarette out of his mouth for a moment. "What's he gonna do once that's taken away?"

"Yeah, like I care!" Luffy yelled as moved forward, almost clawing the air to get at him.

"You'll care after he executes you for this!" Helmeppo shouted angrily as tears built in his eyes.

"What a baby," Usopp said rolling his eyes.

"Why don't you just be a man and fight?" Luffy demanded, holding a fist up, looking ready to go a few rounds.

"Luffy, just ease off some. Why are you trying to get on the Marine's bad side?" Coby said as he struggled to hold Luffy. With each word that was exchanged, Luffy was growing more and more angry. If this kept up, they knew that he would soon throw Coby off him as he pummeled Helempoo's face into the floor. Though, they could see that it was possible that the only thing that was keeping him from doing that was because he was afraid of hurting Coby.

"Why should he care? He's a pirate, what's wrong with pirates fighting with Marines?" Nami asked as she looked up to see that her past self had already taken off. Her eyes sadden at the thought as she looked back to the scene, really not looking forward to when they next meet up.

"I've made up my mind," Luffy said as his eyes hardened, fierce determination now burning. "Today Zoro will join my crew!"

**(Well? How was it? I was planning on going until the two of them set out to sea together, but it got too long and mashed together. Anyway, I hope you enjoy it. I wasn't planning on doing this scene, but I couldn't help it. My computer has also been in for repairs for most of the week so I'm really far behind on all my stories. The next chapter probably won't be near as long as this or some of the others, but I promise that you will all get a shock when. And yes, I know that I didn't show any more scenes of Luffy meeting up with his brothers, but you will see a little more of that next chapter. Please tell me what you think, and I hope to hear that you did like it.)**


	13. Ace's Warning

**Chapter 13: Ace's Warning**

"Wow…" Brook whispered as he watched Helmeppo get back up before running, crying from the room, like a two-year-old would do when he didn't want to go to bed. "So even though he barely knew you, Zoro-san, Luffy-san was standing up for you and your honor."

"Hmph, just shows that he hasn't changed since he was a kid," Zoro responded unconcerned, thought he felt a sense of gratitude for him for saying that.

"Get off me!" Luffy called, now pulling away from Coby, though he was still surprisingly gentle so that he hadn't hurt him. However, Luffy didn't seem to realize that everyone was staring at him as he turned to the back door that led to the alleyway, and marched right through it. The Straw Hats knew him well enough to guess exactly where he was going.

"OHHHHH! He's going in to burst you out now isn't he?" Chopper asked, excitement now back in his eyes as he jumped up and down eagerly.

"Pretty much," Zoro shrugged, saying a silent 'thank-you' to Luffy by not letting that injustice go by unpunished as they also followed him to the alley. Luffy was already heading up in the direction of the base when they heard Coby calling behind them.

They glanced back to see him bursting through the door with Rika right on his heels. It was clear that he was going to try and stop him—however they knew that once Luffy made up his mind—no one and nothing could stop him.

"Don't stop me, Coby!" he called back as they stopped running. The two of them were standing side-by-side in the alley with Luffy's back to them. "My mind is made up!"

"What are you going to do?" Rika asked fearfully, wringing her hands fearfully. "Helmeppo isn't going to let this go! He's going to have you killed! Captain Morgan executed people for less than that!"

"Like to see him try," Luffy told her crossly, as he stared down at his fist. "That spineless coward deserved it! I'm going to go and burst Zoro out of that dump!"

"I'm touched," Zoro smirked.

"But Luffy…!" Coby yelled, but fell silent at the angry look on Luffy's face when he turned back to glare at him.

"Is this the kind of Marines you want to join Coby?" he asked him, "Because if not, then you can either sit back and take it… or stand up to them!"

Coby blinked, trying to figure out what he should do. But Luffy didn't seem to expect an answer as he gave them both the thumbs up and without another word, he ran ahead, heading for the direction of the Marine Base.

"Why are we always running?" Nami panted, now tired of this.

"Don't have time to wait around," Usopp yelled, "Luffy had to hurry or Zoro could've been executed a lot sooner than tomorrow."

"Oh, it was _much_ sooner did they try," Zoro said, thinking back bitterly.

"So they really _did_ try to kill you?!" Brook cried in outrage, "After you've been upholding your end of the deal! How dishonorable!"

"Well, it doesn't really matter at this point," he confessed, thinking back to that heart-stopping moment where he was tied, helpless, to that post and had those guns pointed at him. He couldn't have ever rested in peace if he died in such a pathetic way… unable to even defend himself…

Luffy didn't stop running until he reached the wall and easily jumped it to stand on top so that he could look around. After passing through the wall, they saw that Zoro was still tied there—and apparently sleeping.

"Typical," Nami said to him, going closer so that she could make sure that he was only sleeping, "Even held up like this, you can fall asleep."

"You need to sleep as often as you can, because you need the energy to fight at a moment's notice," he told her coldly.

"But what about all the times you were attacked when you were asleep?" Chopper asked innocently, but Zoro responded with a nasty look that caused Chopper to hide behind Robin.

Robin bent down to whisper to him, "Maybe now isn't the best time to remind him Chopper…"

Luffy jumped down next to them and stood in front of Zoro, much like how he did before, only this time there was a determined look in his eyes. They were wondering why he didn't do anything but watch, why not wake him up and untie him. However Zoro seemed to sense that he wasn't alone anymore. His eyes snapped open and he stared ahead of him, breathing a little harder than normal… at least until he saw who it was who woke him up.

Zoro knew the reason… he had a dream of Kuina and how she had taunted him into growing stronger… he had forgotten where he had been for a minute there.

"You again, don't you have things to do?" Zoro huffed in annoyance, clearly wanting to be left alone.

"I'll untie you but only if you promise to join my crew," Luffy stated bluntly.

"Well, he doesn't beat around the bush does he?" Franky asked with a bark of laughter. "Just comes right out and says it doesn't he?"

Memory Zoro stared at him. "Your what?" he said, sure that he heard wrong.

"I thought I was hallucinating," Zoro told them all, "That the heat had finally got to me and I was starting to see things."

"I run a pirate crew, I'm looking for people to join up," Luffy explained as he walked closer.

Zoro blinked before he understood. "No way," he said coldly, stopping Luffy. "I'd never stoop to joining a criminal. Screw that business."

"Wait, so you didn't want to join?" Chopper asked him in confusion.

"Not at first. The pirates I met up till Luffy were all a bunch of greedy slimeballs," Zoro told him, folding his arms. "I may have been down on my luck here, but I wasn't so desperate enough to ask for help from a pirate."

"That's normally what people think of when they hear someone's a pirate," Nami agreed, having thought much the same until she met him and Luffy. She had always believed that a pirate crew was just a murdering band of monsters who ruined people's lives. It was a great weight off her shoulders to know that's not the case…

"And what's wrong with being a pirate?" Luffy demanded, hands at his sides, and looking at him interestedly—wondering what he was going to say.

"They're despicable, like I'd ever want to join up with one?" Zoro retorted honestly.

"Fate sure has a strange way of changing minds," present-day Zoro muttered thoughtfully.

"But how much could that have really damage your reputation?" Nami asked him in a teasing tone, "You were already considered to be a living, breathing demon after all. One would expect you to become a pirate sooner or later."

"Shut up," he snapped back at her.

"Oh, come on give me a break," Luffy spoke up, speaking what Nami had just said. "Everyone already knows you as some vicious bounty hunter who's always out for blood."

"People can say whatever they want about me," Zoro said to him firmly, "But there isn't a single thing I've done in my life that I regret." His exhausted face then split into a rather twisted smile that sent chills up everyone's spines.

"Looking really scary there, Zoro," Usopp whispered, gulping.

"And I meant every word," he answered truthfully. "I never considered myself to do 'justice'. But I didn't consider myself evil either."

"Then whose side were you on?" Chopper asked him in confusion.

"The only side that mattered to me at the time," Zoro answered simply. "My own…"

"I will make it through this challenge," Zoro in the memory said, without any trace of hesitation or doubt, "And after that I'll accomplish what I want."

Zoro nodded with what his past self just said, glad to see that at least this part of him hadn't faded over two years.

"Yeah, that's great," Luffy muttered slowly before he folded his arms, and looked away. "But I've already decided that you're gonna be on my crew!"

"And if he says he wants something, he usually gets it," Nami sighed, although she was smiling as he said that.

"What? You can't do that!" memory Zoro yelled, completely losing his previous cool, and looking deeply irritated.

"I think he just did," Franky laughed.

"That rubber idiot could never take no for an answer," Sanji sighed, thinking how many times Luffy asked him to join when they met.

"I hear you're one of the best swordsmen around?" Luffy suddenly asked.

"Well, I am!" Zoro said at once while the present-day Zoro fought the urge to sigh. He knew that he was good alright… but back then, he knew he was nothing. Mihawk was right… he had no idea how big the world really was.

"But that idiot captain's son took mine away," memory Zoro finished speaking.

"Guess I'll just gotta go get it back for you," Luffy offered before he smirked.

"What?" Zoro asked, unable to believe what he was saying.

"I didn't think he'd be crazy enough to do that…" Zoro said to the rest of them.

"Hopefully you got used to it quickly," Sanji added as they all nodded in agreement.

"So if you want your sword you'll just gonna have to join my crew," Luffy told him with a laugh.

"Now you're really pissing me off!" Zoro shouted as he fought to get off the post, looking like he wanted to beat Luffy up.

"Wait, he blackmailed you into joining?" Usopp asked, unable to believe it.

"I doubt that he'd really go that far to force someone to join," Robin giggled, "But he knew that you were at the end of the line here…"

"Yeah," Zoro grunted as he thought it over. "I know that he never would've forced me to join if I truly didn't want to… but…"

He stopped speaking, becoming completely lost in thought as he gazed at the scene.

"Zoro?" Chopper asked softly as Franky looked angry.

"Hang on a second!" he hollered at them all accusingly, "You all forced _me_ to join!"

"Well, you didn't have any other choice," Robin smiled deviously at him and he froze at the reminder of what she did to him. "You would've been killed for sure if you stayed at Water 7 with that bounty on your head. And besides…" she closed her eyes and smiled wider, "Do you honestly regret joining?"

"Geez," Franky said, looking away from her, "Only because you all knew how to gang up on a guy."

"Forced you to join, Franky-san?" Brook asked in bafflement.

"I rather not think about it," Franky cringed at the memory, moving a little farther from Robin, as if afraid that she would use her powers on him again.

"Hey genius, the base is in the other direction!" Zoro's voice called out, interrupting them, and they looked up in time to see that Luffy had gone running off in the opposite direction of the building in his hurry.

"Seriously?" Nami sighed, her hand on her head. "How dense could he be? He's as bad as you are, Zoro."

"Hey, at least I knew which way the building was!" Zoro retorted angrily.

"Yeah, and it only took you three weeks to do that," Sanji laughed in a mean way, quick dodging as one of the swords came slicing through the air at him.

"Would you both knock it off?" Nami snapped at them both, looking ready to bash their heads in.

Once Luffy realized his mistake, he stretched out his arms and flew by—with Zoro staring after him.

"Now I thought for sure that I was hallucinating," Zoro confessed, remembering that he thought he was going crazy.

"You looked a little freaked out," Franky laughed at the look on Zoro's face.

"Hey, I didn't know that there was a Rubberman in the world," Zoro said darkly as they ran with Luffy who was dashing around the base, trying to find the swords.

"Again, he just charges around without a plan," Nami sighed, "Really, doesn't he ever think things through?"

"Do you really need to ask?" Robin asked happily.

"That's weird there's nobody here," Luffy said to himself, having completely circled the base. "I gotta find that crazy idiot's son and get Zoro's sword back for him," he went on just then they heard something on the roof and Luffy looked up.

"Sounds like there's something's going on up there," Usopp said as Luffy grinned and began to stretch his arm out, and they could tell that he was planning on flying up to check it out.

"Yeah, I remember hearing something big and heavy breaking now that I think about it," Zoro stated casually, remembering feeling as if there had been an earthquake or a landslide going on.

"Big and heavy?" Sanji asked, eyebrow raised, "Well, I think you know who was responsible for that?"

"Why do I suddenly have a bad feeling about this?" Nami asked in dread.

"Gum Gum… Rocket!" Luffy shouted and he rocketed himself up. Much like before, they were able to follow like they were on some kind of invisible elevator so that they could see what was happening. Luffy overdid it on the Rocket part of his move and was flying even higher… but they could see just in time that there was an enormous statue of what appeared to be a ugly man with a metal jaw, and a giant axe instead of a right hand that was being heaved up by what looked like all the Marines on the island.

Luffy grabbed hold of one of the ropes and was able to stop himself from flying off… but it was too much for the men to hold on to as they lost their grip on the rope and it fell. With a cracking sound that seemed to echo around them, the statue's upper half cracked and fell to the ground below them.

"So that's what happened," Zoro smirked, only wishing he could've seen it the first time.

All the marines on the roof were left speechless as they stared at the ruined statue—too scared to move—and it was clear that the truth hadn't sunk in yet. But they all knew that wouldn't last for much longer.

"That… idiot," Nami moaned out. "Leave it to him to end up breaking something that big!"

"I guess that an 'I'm sorry and I promise never to do that again' will help?" Franky asked, sweatdropped.

But Zoro was still grinning, "No, it was for the best. It was about time that Marine Captain had his ego deflated. Besides, it was ugly as sin anyway… who'd want to stare at that thing the whole time?"

"Sorry 'bout that," Luffy said softly them all in a surprisingly meek voice, showing that he understood that he did something bad here. And it was here that they saw a tall man that looked just like the statue… an intimidating man with blonde hair and a steel jaw and his right hand is replaced by a huge steel axe, the handle of which seems to go right through his forearm.

"Is that…?" Brook asked softly, watching the angry veins on the man's forehead standing out violently.

"Ax-Hand Morgan," Zoro agreed, "And like I said, ugly as sin…"

Morgan jerkily turned his massive head towards Luffy, his face contorted with such fury that he looked ready to kill. In fact…

"Seize him so I can kill him myself!" he bellowed, his eyes practically popping out of his head, almost foaming up like a rabid dog would.

"Who builds a statue of himself anyway?" Franky asked as the Marines looked like they were gonna wet themselves as they hurried to obey.

"That's him!" screamed a familiar whiny voice and that was when Helmeppo appeared behind some of the Marines, pointing at Luffy, "That's the guy! He's the one who punched me, daddy!"

"You want a bottle and diaper while you're at it?" Sanji muttered in disgust.

As soon as he saw him, Luffy actually smiled. "Hey, it's you!" he said happily, moving so quickly that Helmeppo didn't realize how close he was until he was right in front of him. As soon as he realized Luffy was talking to him, he started to scream and attempted to run, but Luffy quickly grabbed him by his shoulder and easily held him back.

"I've been looking for you all over the place," Luffy said cheerfully. "You have something that I really need to get back!"

He put Helmeppo in a headlock and dragged him across the roof and through the only open door as the Marines gave chase.

"Well, that's something that you didn't see coming," Robin laughed as they followed again, now thoroughly enjoying herself as she watched the Marines all panic, wondering what they should do.

"So the captain's son was attacked and kidnapped all in one day, that's good for him," Brook laughed, following along happily.

"This was probably the most interesting thing that's happened to him in his life anyway," Zoro said, "Someone had to bring him down to earth anyway."

Luffy dragged Helmeppo through the base while the wimp screamed in terror the whole time.

"Okay so tell me where Zoro's sword is?" Luffy finally asked, getting tired of the screaming.

"I'll tell you, I promise. Just stop dragging me across the carpet!" Helmeppo begged. And at once they stopped, so that he was hanging like a rag doll in Luffy's hand.

"Fine which way," he asked as Helmeppo weakly pointed behind them. "My room. You just passed it, behind you on the left."

"I should've known he had them," Zoro said in deep annoyance. Figures that idiot would've wanted to feel like a big man by keeping his swords in his sights at all times.

"Why didn't you say so earlier?" Luffy complained, as if it was his fault, as he looked back down the hall. "Now we gotta go all the way back."

"They've got company!" Usopp cried out as the Marines finally caught up, and were now pointing their rifles at him. "Don't move!" one warned.

"Except for letting Helmeppo go!" the other added.

"Right…" Sanji said, rolling his eyes. "Like he'd do that…"

"Don't want to," Luffy said as he lifted Helmeppo up and held him in front of him like a shield. "But you can try shooting me if you want."

"He didn't…?" Chopper called out.

Zoro smirked, "He did…"

Once Helmeppo saw the guns he started to flail around in panic. "No don't shoot! Get the hell out of the way!" he screamed out as Luffy charged ahead with Helmeppo still up in front of him.

"Now that's a side of Luffy you don't see often," Nami said, also running by the stunned Marines, "That was low!"

"Just getting some payback," Robin smiled, having a lot of fun here. "I guess that Luffy just wanted to scare him into helping him as well as to make him pay for what he had done to Zoro."

"Karma can be a bitch," Franky laughed.

"It's not like they're gonna shoot while he a hostage," Sanji added. "It all works out."

They ran back down the hallway but this time, they spotted a flowered sign on one of the doors that read: "My Room".

"Don't tell me…" Franky said, feeling close to gagging as Luffy stopped and opened the door.

"This looks like yours," Luffy said, looking around.

"Odd taste," Robin added once she got a good look at the place.

"I think I'm gonna be sick," Franky said looking at it in disgust. "And he calls himself a man?"

If they didn't know who's room it was, they would've sworn that it belonged to a young girl. The room had pink walls decorated with flowers… pink curtains at the window with flowered plates up on the wall… even with a vanity complete with matching pink furniture.

"Is there make-up at that?" Sanji asked, having violent fashbacks of his time at the Kingdom of Okama's, and his face was twitching horribly at this. "Is this guy a… a…" he gulped, "Okama?"

"A Drag-queen?" Usopp asked, staring around.

"It would explain a lot," Brook added, "This looks like it'd be your room, Nami-san."

"Please, I have much better taste than this!" Nami said, looking at the walls, "I mean, flowered plates? Tacky…"

Chopper had to cover his nose from the strong smell of the flowers as Luffy glanced over the room and beamed proudly as he spotted the three swords up against the wall. "Bingo!" he said going up to them.

"Those don't look like the swords you had before, Zoro-san," Brook said, remembering when he first met him, "Except for the white one…"

"The two black swords got destroyed a while go," he explained as he watched Luffy looking over them all with confusion. "Hold on, there're three here," he said to himself before he looked down at Helmeppo. "Hey weirdo, which one of these Zoro?"

"What a wimp, he passed out," Franky sighed.

Luffy had also sighed in annoyance when sounds came through the window. Looking up in surprise, he dropped Helmeppo and went over to see what the problem was. They also followed his lead and Chopper screamed in panic when he saw Zoro and Coby facing down a firing squad.

"Coby!" Luffy exclaimed in shock as he went back to grab the swords.

"What's Coby doing there?" Nami gasped.

"He was trying to untie me," Zoro explained, "He told me about how they planned on executing me… and when they saw him, they decided to kill us both."

"That's terrible!" Usopp yelled.

But Zoro tuned them out as he thought back to the words that Coby had said to him. How he told him what Luffy had done for him, and how the kid had asked him, not to become a pirate, but merely to help this one pirate this one time. Zoro knew that he had a lot of strength he could offer Luffy. After all, the rubber brain was the only person who could've saved him from execution… and of course, he was the only one who could save Luffy from the same fate.

"What was going through your head when you were looking down at those guns?" Franky asked him curiously as Luffy tied the three swords to his back and was pulling himself back, ready to launch himself through the window.

"I remember fantasizing that over-sized ax at the end of that coward captain's arm chopping that head-shaped barnacle at the top of his neck," Zoro lied as he went charging through the wall, already aware of what happened.

"Zoro!" Usopp and Chopper cried out as they all quickly followed him, having jumped down like how they followed the trio of boys in Goa. But Zoro didn't stop running until they were in earshot of the yard, ready to watch.

"Zoro! What are you…?" Nami gasped, but at that moment, Morgan appeared and pointed his ax at the two as he cried out, "FIRE!"

"NO!" Usopp, Chopper, and Brook screamed in panic as past Zoro turned away, waiting for death to come. But then, they heard the sound of glass breaking and something was shooting across the sky. With aim that he never had before when he was a child, Luffy had flown from the window nd landed directly in front of Zoro and Coby. Shielding them both from the rain of bullets…

"WHAT?" Zoro cried out.

"LUFFY NO!" Coby screamed in terror, tears in his eyes.

But their worry wasn't necessary. All the Straw Hats grinned, it was always amusing to see someone find out the hard way that bullets don't work against a rubber person, as Luffy smiled as his body stretched out.

"See ya!" he shouted as he stretched his arms wide, and deflected the bullets back at the Marines, all of them with their eyes bugging out of their heads and screaming in terror. Luffy just laughed as he declared, "That won't work on me! Told you I was strong!"

"What's with you, Zoro?" Nami asked, grinning as she looked at the stunned expressions on past Zoro and Coby's faces.

"I thought we've been through this," Zoro said rolling his eyes as his memory self demanded to know just what Luffy was.

Luffy turned towards them both with a grin. "My name's Monkey D. Luffy," he said simply as he gave him a thumbs up, "And I'm gonna be King of the Pirates."

Zoro just stared at him. Finally finding his voice he demanded, "You're gonna be King of the Pirates!? Right. You must be completely out of your rubbery mind! Do you have any idea to what that means!?"

"King of the Pirates means King of the Pirates. How can it mean anything other than that?" Luffy asked, as if wondering what else there could be too it.

"Always finding the simple answer to everything," Robin smiled, "I find as one of his most endearing traits."

"He doesn't think about how much work things take does he?" Nami sighed.

"I think that part of his brain that plans things out doesn't work," Sanji agreed, "He just goes for it and waits to see if it works out."

But Coby was now smiling, his eyes bright as explained to Zoro, "Yeah, when he first told me it was shocking but he's completely serious! That's how he is I guess. Cause he actually seems to have every intention of becoming King of the Pirates!" he then looked to Zoro and finished, "And obtaining the world's ultimate treasure the One Piece!"

"He sure sounds like a believer now," Usopp said as Luffy broke into a large grin at his words.

"He has that effect on people," Zoro confessed.

"Did you think he was crazy too?" Nami asked him.

"Of course I did," he answered her, "But then again, my dream is crazy too… so I guess it works…"

Luffy finished brushing himself off from the bullets and untied the swords from his back. He then turned to Zoro and held them out, "Here's what I promised you. There's three. I couldn't tell which one was yours so I just took all of them."

"All of them belong to me," Zoro said as he struggled against his bonds, trying to get feeling back into them. "I use Santoryu, the three-sword style."

Luffy blinked at him for several seconds, and it couldn't have been clearer than he never heard of such a thing before. Present-day Zoro wasn't surprised at all. After all… he had invented not only Santoryu but most of his own sword techniques. He glanced down to his three swords, still at his hip… Kuina's sword, the Wado Ichimonji, which had been with him ever since she had died… Kitetsu the Third… the sword that chose him back in Loguetown… and Shusui… the sword that he received after he defeated Ryuma. These three swords had stuck with him through all the challenges he had gone through for the last two years… and he wasn't going to disappoint them by giving them anything less than his all.

Luffy seemed to snap out of his thoughts as he held them out again—as if expecting Zoro to take them with his arms tied there.

"Take them already," he said grinning. "Just know that if you fight with me now, you'll be a government defying villain. So it's either that… or your left out here and killed by the Marines execution style."

"He's not giving you a choice is he?" Franky laughed.

"Like there was a choice," Zoro grinned at him. "If my only two choices were to become a pirate, or stay where my days were numbered… then it was fate that stepped in."

And in the memory, for the first time, a true grin appeared on Zoro's face. And the present-day Zoro remembered the feeling well. He liked this kid, whoever he was. He was just as crazy and stubborn as he was… "What are you? The son of a devil?" his past self grinned. "It doesn't matter. Cause if I don't chose your side, I'll just end up dead on these sticks." His eyes narrowed as he finished, "So let's do this."

"So you're finally gonna join my crew!" Luffy cheered, completely forgetting the danger they were still in as he danced around happily with the swords. "This is the best thing ever!"

"Would you quit celebrating already and cut these ropes off me?!" Zoro yelled in irritation, wanting to get out of this mess already.

"Honestly," Zoro added as he watched, he had enough of that dump… he was aching to fight.

In the background the whole time, the Marines listened to Morgan explain about the Devil Fruits, and then finally order his men to charge in and kill them.

"Right, I forgot about him," Sanji muttered in boredom as they ran towards them with swords while Luffy and Coby were trying to get Zoro's ropes off.

"Come on, hurry!" Coby cried out in panic.

"They got these things on here tight," Luffy muttered in frustration, tugging at them.

"Come on, quit screwing around!" Zoro yelled as he tried to pull himself free, his eyes wide as the Marines got closer.

"He never was good with knots," Usopp whispered as Luffy muttered something about how the knots got tighter instead of lose.

Finally losing it, Zoro yelled out, "Give me one of my damn swords now!"

"Don't see you losing it often, Zoro-san," Brook said in surprise.

"Well, when you're about to die then you tend to become desperate," he snapped back when Coby screamed in terror as the marines had reached them, ready to cut him to shreds. At once Luffy at that moment handed Zoro one of his swords and with his mouth, he had been able to cut himself free, grabbed the other two swords out of Luffy's hands before he stopped the Marine's swords.

Though he had been kept there for three weeks, he was more than able to hold them all back.

"Roronao Zoro," Morgan gasped.

"Awesome!" Chopper cried out, his eyes sparkling.

"Amazing!" Brook added, amazed that someone could be this strong despite being starved and exhausted.

"Wow!" Luffy exclaimed the ropes in his hands. "That's so cool!"

Zoro still had no problem holding them where they were. "You make one move and you die," he warned them all as the Marines froze, tears in their eyes.

"He's scary," one whimpered.

"And they call themselves Marines?" Nami asked, smacking her forehead.

"You forget that this is the East Blue," Robin pointed out, "The Marines here aren't like the ones in the Grand Line…"

With the Marines now too scared to move, Zoro looked up to Luffy and said, "Today I officially become a criminal, having fought the marines. So I will become a pirate… that I can promise you." He narrowed his eyes as his glared at his new captain as he added, "But I want you to know one thing! While I'm with you, the only thing I dedicate myself to is fulfilling my own ambitions!"

This peaked Luffy's interest. "Which is?"

Present-day Zoro's eye saddened, feeling a little bit of shame at the words he was going to say. But he had traveled far and wide, searching for one man… and he wasn't willing to give up his dream without a fight.

"To be nothing less than the world's greatest swordsman," Zoro proclaimed, his shadowed eyes seemed to give him the look of a man possessed. "If somewhere along the way I have to give that up, I then want you to accept responsibility. After which you get to apologize to me at the end of a sword."

The Straw Hats all stared at him in disbelief, looking from the past Zoro, to the one standing with them with wide eyes.

"Whoa, wait a second!" Usopp called out loudly to the Zoro next to him, "You mean to tell us that you made Luffy promise if he ever got in your way, you'd have him kill himself?"

"Basically," Zoro answered coolly. His face gave away no emotion, but his eye did seem to soften as he looked at the scene. Once again wondering just when that vow no longer mattered… how he began to feel how his captain's dream seemed to become more important to him than his own of defeating Mihawk. "Relax," he added, at their horrified expressions. "I don't intend for him to ever fulfill it."

"Do you still feel that way?" Robin whispered to him as the others looked relieved and turned back to watch Zoro scaring the Marines. "Especially how you made that deal with Kuma at Thriller Bark?"

He stared at her. "How'd you…?" he hissed.

"Forgive me," she whispered back, "I overheard… but I didn't tell anyone else about it."

Zoro sighed in relief as he looked ahead to the others. "So you, Brook, and Mr. Nosebleed all know…?"

"But Luffy and the others don't," Robin reassured him. "I knew that you'd want that kept quiet from everyone… especially from Luffy."

"Of course. How do you think he'd take that if he knew?" Zoro asked her crossly. "Besides, that's ancient history. I survived…"

She gave him a thoughtful expression. "Yes… and it is a blessing… but after seeing this… you've come a long way since then."

"It changes nothing," he told her firmly. "I like to think of it as finally paying my debt to him for saving me back here. So we don't owe each other anything… at least that's what I used to think."

Robin just looked at him.

"Besides…" he finished, "After fighting beside him all this time… I found that I have a new goal in mind to work for. I don't know when it happened… but I realized that if you can't even protect your captain's dream, then what hope do you have for your ambition?"

"What's your new goal?" she asked with a smile.

"I think it's the same as yours," he answered, and she smiled a little bigger.

Sanji happened to overhear the whole thing as well, but kept quiet as he kept his eyes on this. You'd never have guessed Moss-Head was the same person he was here fighting Marines. In some ways he was still the same idiot who kept getting lost in a straight line. But in other ways he was completely different. He frowned, suddenly thinking of the person he was when he was still working at the Baratie… if they were going to see that… what would he see of himself? He suddenly understood why he and Nami had been staring so intently at their past selves.

Luffy was smiling, as if he had expected Zoro to say something like that. "The World's Greatest swordsman, huh?" he repeated, "Sounds pretty good. The King of the Pirates wouldn't have anything less than the best on his crew."

"Damn right," Usopp smiled proudly.

Memory Zoro returned Luffy's smile. "Big talker. From this point on, no matter if I'm a criminal or not; I will spread the name Zoro throughout the world!"

"Looks like you got your wish, Zoro-san," Brook told him happily.

"What are you standing there frozen for!?" Morgan yelled, once again forgetting he was here. "I want you to kill all three of them right now!"

The Marines seemed completely lost to what they were supposed to do; it was hard to say who they were more afraid of. They seemed terrified of what Morgan would've done to them if they didn't obey, but they clearly didn't want to risk moving with Zoro's threat over their heads.

Thankfully, Luffy solved that problem as he raised his leg, telling Zoro to duck. "Gum Gum… WHIP!" he screamed and in one fluent move, he stretched his leg across, hitting all the Marines that Zoro held up—with Zoro ducking just in time.

Coby was cheering him on as Zoro got back to his feet, asking him, "Wanna tell me what you are?"

"I'm just a guy who ate the Gum Gum Fruit," Luffy explained, kicking his leg out happily.

Zoro looked completely lost as he asked, "What's a Gum Gum Fruit?"

"I'm almost sorry I asked," Zoro smirked at his own stupefied expression.

"A Rubberman!?" one of the Marines that Luffy just hit cried out in disbelief.

"It looks like he does have Devil Fruit powers," Morgan growled, his eyes narrowed in hatred.

Another one of his subordinates looked up and exclaimed, "Captain, we don't stand a chance against them."

"Yeah, just look at them!" another one added, pointing. "They're insane!"

"That's usually the reaction we get," Usopp said laughing.

"I often think that myself," Sanji added, "We had to be to chose to follow such a crazy captain." But he was smiling the whole time, showing that he didn't regret it either.

"We couldn't even take Zoro on by himself!" they pleaded with their captain, and it wasn't a secret. These guys honestly didn't stand a chance against the two of them.

With every word they said, Ax-hand Morgan's face seemed to grow angrier as he glared at them all; looking angry enough to kill each and every one of them. "This is a direct order!" he bellowed out. "Every marine who sprouted weakness pull your guns out and shoot yourselves!"

"WHAT?!" Chopper screamed out in horror.

"How could any leader demand that?!" Brook demanded, liking his memory less and less with each second.

But Morgan kept his ax raised threateningly, "I can't do anything with weak soldiers!"

"That's no way to treat your own men!" Brook cried out, fury pouring through his bones. These men did their best to follow his orders, but he honestly cared nothing for any of them. Even pirates treated each other better than this!

"Tsh, if I could, I'd give him a pounding he wouldn't forget," Franky growled, holding up a massive hand. "Damn, this is what I hate about a memory! We can't do anything!"

"Deal with it," Sanji sighed, throwing his cigarette away, "We all feel the same way. But we don't need to worry here. If I know these two idiots, they won't let ax-man get away with this."

"Who were you calling an idiot, Mr. Nosebleed?" Zoro asked, his eye narrowing dangerously.

"Just like you heard me," Sanji smirked back.

"I'll hack you to pieces one of these days," Zoro promised darkly.

Here, the subordinates were looking angry, and their eyes were filled with something other than fear… hatred.

"Looks like they don't like him either," Robin said softly.

"The only reason they followed his orders was because they were afraid of him," Zoro explained.

"That's usually why tyrants are in charge," Nami stated, folding her arms.

"Yeah," Chopper added, his eyes darkening as he thought of Wapol, and his felt anger burn inside his chest. The only reason why he was king for so long was because he was stronger than the people. Otherwise, he was sure that he would've been overthrown. If he had the power he had now when he ruled… he could've taken Wapol out.

"What babies," Zoro in the memory said, holding up his swords, "This'll be easy."

"Yeah," Zoro agreed with his past self, "The only thing I was really scared of was this guy's face."

But Luffy didn't wait around anymore as he charged, leaving a dust trail behind him. He was going straight for Morgan… that didn't surprise them… what did was Coby.

"Luffy!" he shouted out, "Bring those Marines crumbling to their knees!"

"First he believed that the Marines were like saints, now he's rooting for a pirate to take them out," Usopp said, watching it all with delight. He was finally having fun watching this because it was obvious from the start who was going to win.

Before the Marines had any idea to what was happening, Luffy jumped up and raised his fist, ready to throw a punch.

"YEAH!" Chopper cried out, but Ax-Hand raised his heavy ax and blocked it, but the force of the punch was enough to cause the sound to reverberate throughout Morgan's body. Zoro looked to his past self in time to see him take the sword out of him mouth. He knew what was going through his mind… he was watching… wanting to see what his new captain could do.

"Rankless, lowlife bums!" Morgan yelled as he threw off his jacket, finally snapping completely. "You have no right to defy my superiority! I am Marine captain Ax-Hand Morgan!"

"And I'm Luffy," he answered relaxed, "Nice to meet ya!"

"Normally you introduce yourself before you kick someone's ass," Sanji muttered.

"Die!" Morgan yelled bringing his ax down, leaving a deep crack in the ground from the impact. Thankfully, Luffy dodged the attack, spinning around like a top to avoid it—and then with a kick, knocked him to the ground.

"Come on! This isn't even a fight!" Franky cheered on, "Is that the best that he could do?!"

"The East Blue is easily considered the weakest of the four," Robin answered him. "In fact, the average bounty in this particular sea is set at around 3,000,000. So I guess the Marines don't feel like they need to have extra strong Marines here."

"But the ones here don't have a clue to what they're doing," Nami added grimly. While she could understand that, a part of her was still resentful to them that they usually just leave the big named pirates alone. In the end, it turned out to be a small group of pirates that took out those pirates in the whole East Blue… she smiled a little at that and felt herself stand a little taller at that.

"The captain's getting pummeled out there!"

"It's embarrassing."

"Yeah," Franky agreed, "Finding out your leader, that you're shit scared of, is actually a weakling would do that."

But Luffy was far from done. He grabbed the front of Morgan's shirt and started yelling, "Call yourself a Marine?" He then began to throw punch after punch, yelling out, "You destroyed my friend Coby's dream!"

"He's thinking about Coby's dream of being a Marine as well?" Nami said, unsure to how to feel to that.

"One thing that Luffy never laughs at is somebody's dream," Zoro answered her.

"Yes, so long as you're willing to fight for it, he wants to help them achieve it even if it's small," Usopp said proudly.

"Straw Hat stop right there! Look at what I got!" someone yelled. Luffy paid no attention to them and continued to punch Morgan, but the Straw Hats looked and Chopper yelled in worry. Helmeppo was standing there with a gun to Coby's head.

"Are you stupid or something? I said stop!" Helmeppo screamed, "If you'd pay attention to me you'd see I have a hostage here you might want to look at!?"

"Oh, he's stupid alright," Sanji answered, watching how badly Helmeppo's hand was shaking, "But he might want to make it look a little more convincing."

"I thought that he was knocked out back in his room," Usopp said quietly.

"Hey," Zoro in the past said, which finally got Luffy's attention.

"If you value your scrawny little friend's life then don't move a muscle!" Helmeppo ordered. "I'm serious here! One move and I'll shoot him!"

Luffy stared expressionlessly at him—but then they realized that he was looking at Coby. As if silently asking him what he wanted him to do? Coby was frightened and was shaking… but as he looked at Luffy who gave him a winning grin, he seemed to come to a decision. Coby blinked, and like before, his confidence suddenly seemed to erupt and he called out without a trace of fear, "Luffy, listen! Don't let anything that happens to me stop you! Even if I die!"

"Wow," Brook said softly, was this really the same boy who was afraid to stand up for himself?

"Luffy has that effect on people," Robin answered, "With him around, you feel that anything's possible and you feel the longing to chase your dreams."

"How does he do it?" Nami asked wondering.

"Of course, you got it," Luffy said as he turned his back on Morgan and slowly approached Helmeppo as he winded up his arm. "Hear that, you big idiot? Coby is ready to die by your hand."

"Like Luffy would stand by and let that happen," Usopp said confidently.

Helmeppo was completely panicked now, watching him coming closer. "Don't you move! I said don't move or I'll shoot! I swear it!"

"But Helmeppo and Coby were friends when we met them," Chopper said softly, "How did it go to that from this?"

"People change, Chopper," Robin answered simply. "While I don't know what happened… I think that after working together for all that time, I think that they grew to become friends." After all, when she first met Luffy and the others, she had been their enemy as well…

Luffy kept slowly walking towards them before he stopped, still grinning, he threw his arm back, ready to launch another attack—but suddenly Morgan was back on his feet and was standing behind him, ready to bring his arm down at him.

"Luffy!" Coby, Chopper, and Usopp warned instinctively, But Luffy didn't bother with him.

"Gum Gum…"

"What's he doing?" Nami cried just as Zoro told her to relax.

"Time's up! For I am the fearless captain, Ax-Hand Morgan!" Ax-hand Morgan bellowed ready for an attack that surely would've sliced Luffy right in half…

Zoro picked up his swords while Helmeppo grabbed Coby and held the gun closer to his head. "Daddy! Hurry up and kill him already!" he cried out in panic.

"Pistol!" Luffy screamed as the ax fell… what happened was so quick that if you blinked you would've missed it. Luffy had punched Helmeppo in the face before he could pull the trigger and was now out cold on the ground with a dented in face…

While, at the same time, Zoro charged forwards and took out Morgan in one attack. His ax-like arm was just inches from Luffy's head by the time that Zoro took care of him. Morgan stood there for a fraction of a second before his eyes rolled into the back of his head and he fell back, landing with a crash on the ground.

"Thank you," Luffy said to Zoro, who smiled back.

"Just doing my job, captain," was his answer.

And like that, the memory finally faded.

"Wow," Chopper whispered, pride going through his whole body, "That was amazing!"

"So that was how you two met?" Brook asked in wonder. "You two hardly knew each other, but you were already acting like old crewmates."

"I guess," Zoro confessed with a shrug. "Didn't really think about it at the time, but in the heat of battle it's hard not to trust Luffy. It took me awhile to really get used to it. After that, I decided that I would travel with him and see how it went. I never imagined that when we set off like that, we'd be here in the New World like this."

"Yeah, I think we all felt that way at first," Nami agreed, staring ahead of her at the darkness, wondering what would've happened to her if she never met with Luffy and the others… "Who would've thought it?"

"And that's just how it went?" Brook asked them all curiously. "You all joined up one by one like that…?"

"That's right," Zoro said, "It was just the two of us at first. We travelled together for a couple weeks before we teamed up with Nami."

"Yeah, and that was a log of fun," Nami nodded, smiling at the memories, "And we came to Usopp's village after awhile. And after we helped him out there, we went to the sea restaurant where we ran into Sanji."

"And after you officially joined us after we dealt with Arlong, we set off for the Grand Line," Sanji added, puffing on his cigarette. "Strange how it all worked out in the end now that you think of it."

"It usually works out the same way," Nami laughed at the thought, "When Luffy asks someone to join, at first, the offer's turned down completely. However if the person really interests Luffy, he will still try to get them to join anyway regardless of their initial decision."

"However, even if he is rejected, Luffy will treat the person as if they were already a crew member," Sanji spoke from experience, "no matter how annoyed it makes them. He'll sometimes act as if it is his decision and not ours whether we join or not."

The next memory was of Zoro and Luffy heading down the street towards the docks, Luffy carrying a sack over his shoulder, and Zoro placing his swords back to his side.

"That was a thin act you put on back there," Zoro said to him, "I wouldn't be surprised if they see right through it."

"Act?" Usopp repeated in confusion.

"Coby should be able to handle the rest of it on his own," Luffy said confidently, "I have faith in him."

"It is a fitting way to leave this place," Zoro said as they came to the small boat, "Unable to turn back seeing how everyone here hates us now. Very pirate like…"

Luffy laughed as he untied the rope, "Yeah. It sure is."

"Wait, what do you mean by 'everyone here hates us now'?" Nami asked him, not sure she understood. "You mean they were upset that you took out that Morgan guy?"

"But he was terrorizing this whole town!" Franky said loudly, "Why would…?"

"Oh, no," Zoro corrected, "They were thrilled. They were treating us like heroes for getting those two out of their hair. I'm talking about how Luffy beat up Coby."

"Oh, that makes much more sense—whoa, wait a minute, what do you mean that Luffy beat Coby up?!" Usopp yelled.

"You honestly think that those Marines would've let Coby join them?" Zoro asked him as they all looked just as confused so he explained, "He spent two years as a cabin boy on board a pirate ship. Even if he was held as a hostage, I doubt that the Marines would've let him join. Luffy wanted to help him out, show them that he wasn't on our side. So Luffy pretended to pick a fight and got Coby so mad that he hit him and made it look like they weren't friends."

"Oh, I get it, Yohohoho," Brook said happily.

"And because of that, the people were scared, and wanted us to leave," Zoro shrugged, unconcerned. "But that all happened after we took out Ax-Hand and Rika took us back to the restaurant so that we could eat. God, that food was delicious…"

"After three weeks of no food, I guess so," Nami said.

"Anyway, the Marines came in and said that they couldn't allow pirates to say any longer, but because they were so grateful to us for taking out Morgan, they didn't report us," Zoro finished speaking.

"Well that's ungrateful of them since you saved their hides," Usopp said bitterly.

"They were just doing their job," Robin said, "I think it was actually a reasonable deal…"

"I take it Coby stayed?" Sanji muttered thoughtfully, lighting up another cigarette and watched as Luffy untied the little boat from the dock.

"Yep," Zoro said, "He felt that he was ready to join the Marines, and that he didn't need Luffy's protection anymore."

"You think that he would've come to say goodbye though," Chopper said sadly as he watched them about to climb into the boat. Zoro didn't need to answer, knowing that wasn't true…

"LUFFY!" called a familiar voice and they looked up to see that Coby, Rika, and her mother were there.

"Oh!" Chopper called happily, "So they did come!"

"After all that, why think that they wouldn't?" Franky asked grinning.

Coby stood there for a moment, before he sprang into a salute. "I can never thank you enough! You've done more for me than anyone ever has!"

"I've never heard of a Marine thanking the pirate who beat him up before, now there's one for the history books," memory Zoro laughed.

The one-eyed Zoro closed his eye as he smiled. It was from that moment on he knew that Luffy wasn't like any other pirate he ever met before. And not just because he was made of rubber… it was here that he knew that Straw Hat Luffy would be the only man he would call his captain.

Luffy grinned as well as they spread the sail and shoved off. With Luffy waving goodbye to them all, promising, "We'll meet again Coby! Someday!"

"Bye Luffy…" they watched Coby mouthed as Rika cried out happily, "Hope to see you again someday!"

"You know… I'd like to come here and meet them all someday," Brook said softly.

"Me too," Nami smiled. "We have a lot of friends to visit once we reach the end of the Grand Line. A long way to go."

"Something to look forward to, Yohohoho," Brook proclaimed excitedly, thinking longingly of Laboon and praying that he was safe and doing well.

"Hey look!" Franky cried out, looking back and they turned in time to see that the Marines had come too. They sprang into salutes like Coby did to see them off.

"See Ya!" Luffy cried out.

"Marines seeing pirates off isn't unusual," Robin said in a teasing tone, "But usually, they do that by running them _out_ of a town."

"That was definitely a surreal moment," Zoro confessed as he walked alongside the little boat.

"At last our pirate crew finally sets sail!" Luffy cried out.

"Not much of a crew," Sanji laughed. "You two can't tell direction or cook… how'd you survive?"

"Shut up!" Zoro snapped at him.

"I've got the feeling some interesting adventures are waiting for us," Zoro said coolly from the back of the boat.

"You had no idea how right you were either," Nami told him tiredly, thinking about all the messes they had gotten themselves into since joining up.

"You can't say it's been dull though," Robin asked her.

Luffy laughed happily at those words, "And I'll be King of the Pirates. I know it!"

Zoro gazed at him as if he were a difficult riddle and asked, "You seem more than a little obsessed about becoming King of the Pirates. Is there any kind of story behind it or any kind of reason at all?"

"Yeah, there was," present-Zoro said. "I know now…"

"No, no reason," Luffy told him, "It's just…"

"Just what?" he asked.

"I promised someone… a while back," Luffy confessed, his hand on his hat as his eyes became glassy for a moment and they knew that he was thinking of Shanks. "I swore that I would gather a crew, find the world's greatest treasure, and become King of the Pirates…"

He grinned as he finished, "And this straw hat knows the whole story."

Past Zoro smirked as he gazed up at the sky, "I see."

"Now let's go!" Luffy cried out eagerly as they headed towards the setting sun, "Time to set our heading to the Grand Line!"

"Getting a little ahead of himself isn't he?" Nami asked, though unable to find any scorn to use in her voice as she smiled at Zoro.

"But didn't you ask him what he meant?" Usopp asked Zoro who shrugged.

"No," he answered. "It really wasn't my business to know. If he wanted to tell me, he would've. He said more about it than I thought he would. He just didn't mention Shank's name."

And also, he knew what it meant to fulfill your dream because of a promise… his hand went to Kuina's sword as he thought that. Yeah, he could get it.

"Funny that you two only met because he just heard a rumor about you," Usopp stated, looking at Zoro. "If he hadn't, you'd be dead…"

"I guess I should count my blessings," Zoro said unconcerned. But still… seeing these memories were bringing up so many of his own. More than anything else at the moment, he wished that he could speak with Luffy about this. But as if they were hearing his thoughts, a scene came up again… but it wasn't what they expected. They had thought that they would be at sea with Luffy and Zoro again… but instead they were in a very familiar-looking forest.

"Wait," Robin said, staring around her. "Is this…?"

"It's the Middle Forest," Chopper said, having seen these trees enough times to know what it was. But something was different here. Here, he could smell, really smell the trees and plants here.

"Seriously?" Sanji asked, looking up at the threes. "You know, I think you're right. Why the hell are we back here?"

Nami looked back to Zoro and asked, "Did you and Luffy come back here?"

He shook his head. "No," he answered honestly. "We spent most of our time at sea till we met up with you… we never stopped by Goa… and if we did, I think Luffy would've mentioned it."

"Man, I'm really getting tired of this," Usopp said, now wishing that he was out of this place as he went to kick a tree to vent some of his frustration, expecting for his foot to just go through… but this time…

"OOOOOWWWWWW!" he screamed, jumping up and down, holding his foot as he hopped up and down in pain. "THAT HURT!"

"What?! That's impossible!" Nami said, coming towards him as he rubbed his big toe. "We're in a memory aren't we? We aren't supposed to feel anything! We haven't been able to do anything since this whole trip down memory lane started!"

"I hate to say it, Nami-swan," Sanji said, touching the tree nearest him. "But we can _feel_ it here."

"What?" Robin repeated in surprise, going to some flowers near her feet and picking one. "You're right," she muttered in surprise, holding the delicate flower in her hands, "We can touch things here."

"What's going on?" Chopper whispered. But just then they heard a loud shout not too far away. Without another word, desperate for some answers, they took off, having getting bumped and scratched along the way, no longer able to just go through things like they had been. Feeling as if they were going to lose their minds… they came near a clearing, the stopped dead at what they saw.

There was Ace standing there… but this wasn't like the memory versions of him that they've seen. For those who met him, he looked just like how he did when they met him in Alabasta… a grown-up, mature version of him instead of the wild child or teenager they had seen him as. He was there with Luffy… and this time they knew that it had to be _their_ Luffy… he was looking just like how they saw him this morning when they arrived at this island… but what really got their attention was that he was hugging a young man who they realized was like a grown-up version of Sabo.

Luffy had his face buried in his shoulder as Sabo patting his back in a comforting way as he cried.

"L-Luffy?" Chopper whispered, moving forward, staring at Sabo's smiling face. Luffy was crying so loudly that he didn't hear them, but someone else did. Ace slowly turned to look at them, seemingly unsurprised to see them there. He tilted his hat back up, grinning at them all in a teasing way before he put a finger to his lips; silently telling them to stay quiet.

As if that had been the signal, they suddenly felt the wind pick up, blowing them backwards. Startled, they tried to move forward, but the wind picked up—getting stronger and stronger—as if they were in the middle of a tornado.

Without any warning, the entire crew was suddenly swept off their feet and throw violently up into the sky—unable to so much as scream as the darkness clouded their visions… blacking them out.

The whole time Ace just smiled as he watched the crew disappear. Luffy finally looked up excitedly at Sabo, "This is great! We're all together again! Ace…? What are you looking at?"

"Just waving to someone…" he said coolly, smiling as Luffy looked to see where he was looking but saw nothing.

"But I don't…?" he said.

"It's nothing," Sabo laughed, ruffling Luffy's hair. "It's good to see you again."

Luffy blinked and grinned back before jumping in for another hug, not aware that his crew had been there just moments ago.

***Zoro***

Zoro was left drifting through a void-like space. Unlike the dark one before, this one was filled with a brilliant light shining around him. Here, he was floating, as if his body was being supported by water. He felt sick, but at the same time, felt a strange sense of peace and felt himself starting to doze off, fighting the urge to sleep.

What just happened? One minute he was in a memory, the next he wasn't… and now this place? His mind felt fuzzy, like he had one too many… as he struggled to remember, to figure out what was going on.

"You really let him get into some trouble this time," suddenly came a familiar voice from next to him. Though he only heard that voice once before, he knew who it was.

"Ace?" he asked in surprise, wondering if he was going crazy.

"Glad to see that your memory isn't as weak as you seem to be," said another voice… this one he knew anywhere… though it had been years since he last heard it.

His eye snapped open and he was staring up at him. Looking to his side, he saw them. Fire-Fist Ace was standing there beside him… but his eyes were focused only on the small figure next to him. A young girl with short, dark blue hair, and dark brown eyes was there… a smug smile that he knew all too well. It was the same smirk she gave him every time she beat him…

"Kuina?" he croaked out, his one eye widening as he saw her face.

Again she smirked as she looked him up and down. "Nice look, Cyclops," she said, "But really… you haven't changed a bit."

"What's going on?" he demanded. "You two can't be here! Am I dead?"

"Jumping the gun aren't you?" Kuina asked teasingly, "No… don't worry. You're far from dead."

"Then where…?" he began, now feeling the familiar sense of frustration he always felt when he spoke with her arrive and push out the shock and disbelief.

"You're in an in-between world," Ace explained, his arms folded and his eyes hidden by the rim of his hat, "A space between the lands of the living and the dead."

"And how did I get here?" he asked slowly.

"You've been here all along, Dummy," Kuina stated as if it was obvious from the start.

"But this place isn't anything like before," Zoro retorted angrily.

"Nothing is as it seems here," Ace told him, "So you can't take anything for granted."

Zoro blinked several times as he continued to stare at Kuina. She looked just like how she did when he last saw her… the night that they made their vow… it had been the last time he saw her alive.

"I don't know whether or not to be angry with you for letting him come here, or thankful," Ace said suddenly, shaking his head. "I asked for you to look after him for me, but instead, you let him get dragged off here."

"When you say 'him' I'm guessing you're talking about Luffy?" Zoro asked.

"Who else?" he asked with a shrug.

"You mind telling me what's going on?" Zoro demanded, growing angry.

"The island that you all landed on is usually avoided by everyone in the New World," Ace explained, "This is the island named Agartha."

"Agartha?" he repeated slowly, trying to recall where he heard that before. "Wait… Robin mentioned that place didn't she? Something about the land of the dead?"

"Not as slow as you used to be, eh, Zoro?" Kuina smiled.

"More like a door to the in-between," Ace corrected, "the living cannot go beyond the in-between without losing their lives. This place you see is like a bridge. You can only go as far as halfway. You go any farther, and you pass on to the next world."

"How am I here?" he asked.

"Isn't it obvious? You went through the door," Kuina stated, as if speaking to a child.

"The door? You mean that hole?" Zoro asked.

"What do you think?" she asked, rolling her eyes, that was so nostalgic that he had to fight the urge to smile.

"This place was once sacred… here it was possible for you to meet with lost loved ones and speak with them once again," Ace explained, his hands now in his pockets. "But the more people that travelled here, their intense desires soon grew."

"What do you mean?" Zoro asked, not understanding, "And what's with the memories that we're seeing?"

"My little brother's memories?" he repeated dully. "It's obvious. In order to gain the right to see your loved one, you have to share your memories of what it means to be alive. You must show those memories for the right to speak with a dead person again. When you jumped down to find Luffy, you viewed a handful of those memories."

"And why am I here now? Where are the others?" he asked, suddenly starting to grow anxious the longer he was here.

"They're all safe at the moment," Ace assured them.

"At the moment?" Zoro repeated, now getting angry.

"As I was saying before. The intense desires to speak with someone soon grew so powerful that I guess that they developed feelings of their own," Ace went on. "That's why the door was closed and the key broken. The collected emotions, along with the power that this place holds soon gave birth to a monster. And when the door was opened, Luffy was brought down here but he also released the creature."

Zoro sighed. "Great job Luffy," he groaned out.

"I'm sorry," Ace told him with a sigh. "He's always been a handful… though I'm sure I don't need to tell you that, you must know that by now."

"What happened to the monster?" Zoro demanded, "I haven't seen anything."

"Because this monster doesn't have a form yet, you can't see it," Ace explained, "It has no mind of its own. It knows only what the memories it sees shows. As we speak, it's now on the island and is shaping it to its will."

"In other words, it's using the power of the in-between and your captain's memories to try and take shape," Kuina finished for him.

"What does it want?" he asked.

"Hard to say," Ace confessed. "All I know is that it has taken form from someone in Luffy's memories. Now this whole island is a part of it."

"What do you mean?" Zoro asked, feeling himself slipping back to sleep, though he desperately wanted to stay awake.

"I mean that the entire island has changed into fragments of memories and the creature has hid itself here," he answered, as Zoro was now losing the fight to stay awake.

"So if you want to close the door, you gotta find the creature and lure it back here," Kuina said, her voice disappearing, and he fought even harder to stay awake, not wanting to say goodbye just yet.

"Don't worry," Ace's voice went on, "Luffy's safe with me for the moment. But until the monster's destroyed, I can't send him back. So please do what you can to destroy it."

"Wait…" Zoro said, his eye finally growing too heavy for him and felt himself drifting off.

"It'll be alright," Kuina said, and her voice was the last thing he heard before darkness took over and he slipped away… "If you can destroy the creature, we'll explain everything to you. Now prove to me that you're stronger than when you used to lose to me."

**(So what do you think? Ace has come to tell him what was going on. For those of you who were wondering just what he was talking about, I'm afraid that I can't tell you everything. That's how it always works… they don't understand everything going on at the start of the arc, and the closer they get to facing the boss, does everything come out. So I hope that this little twist was enough to keep you guessing.)**


	14. Enter Cat Burglar Nami

**Chapter 14: Enter Cat Burglar Nami**

"_You're weak, Zoro… nothing ever changes…"_

Kuina…

_"It'll be alright. If you can destroy the creature, we'll explain everything to you. Now prove that you're stronger than when you used to lose to me."_

Two thousand and one… that's how many times they fought… and it was also the same number of times he lost to her. Zoro always knew that he was weaker than she was. His first goal had merely been to grow stronger so that he could defeat her one day… but every time _he_ got stronger, so did she.

At the time he didn't care how long it took before he would finally beat her. However she had died before they could finally settle it once and for all. Two thousand and one fights… there will never be a two thousand and two…

What he said that night was true in more ways than he thought.

It would be the _last _time they ever fought…

Once he lost to her again, they vowed that they would race to the top and see who got there first. But then… she died… not in battle, but because she was stupid enough to trip on some stairs and broke her neck. He remembered how furious he had been with her. It was as if she was running away from their vow! Now he was stuck here forced to go on for both of them. His greatest rival was gone.

Since that day, he trained day and night so that he could become the best… and when he finally set off on his journey to fulfill that promise, he decided to merely put it all in fate's hands. Who would've thought that he would be here now?

Countless adventures and immeasurable spirit… that was what made him grow stronger. For the sake of the people he made vows with… he will continue to fight for his dream no matter how long it took or what stood in his way.

"Zoro…" Kuina's voice seemed to echo around him and suddenly his one eye snapped open. Breathing hard, he first thought that he was trapped in the darkness again, but he realized that there were little twinkling lights above him. It took him a minute to realize that those were starts in the night sky…

Sitting bolt-upright, he stared around, and realized that he knew where he was. He was back in those old ruins… The rest of the crew, minus Luffy, was there with him and there was Brook playing his guitar and singing the sorrowful version of Binks Sake.

Chopper heard him move and looked up in time to see him sitting up. "Zoro!" he cried, running over to him as Brook stopped his sad song.

"Zoro," Usopp said looking up, also coming over.

"Are you ok, Zoro-san?" Brook asked in concerned.

"Y-yeah," Zoro admitted, glancing around him. "What happened?" he asked in confusion as he slowly got back to his feet, Ace's and Kuina's voice still in his head. Was that all just a dream?

"Well, we're not sure," Nami said, rubbing her head and staring around at the dark ruins. "We've only been awake a few minutes. But it looks like we're back out of that hole."

"Or lack-there-of," Sanji muttered, pointing to where the large pit had been before, only for them to see as if it had been filled in. "We woke up out here and suddenly we find that it's gone. And our Rubber Brain Captain is nowhere to be found."

"But what happened?" Chopper asked fearfully, "Luffy was still down there!"

"Don't worry. He's safe for now," Zoro said, thinking back, his head pounding slightly. "He's with his brother." They looked up at him, startled, as he explained how he spoke with Ace and what he told him; but he didn't mention Kuina.

"You… spoke with him?" Usopp asked in a stunned tone. "Ace…? As in… ACE?"

"I don't know if it was a dream or not," he confessed, his head finally clearing up, "But if it wasn't a dream, then Ace really did say that Luffy's with him, but he can't bring him back as long as that monster's out there. He didn't say why though."

"So there's some kind of monster that was released and has taken the form of someone from Luffy's memory?" Sanji summed up.

"That's just what I remember," Zoro said as Usopp, Chopper, Nami, and Brook all screamed at the thought. "And now it's somewhere on the island."

"But what did Ace mean by how it's using the power of the in-between to change the island?" Robin asked.

"Don't know," Zoro said, as he looked around the ruins. "But apparently if we want Luffy back, we have to go and lure it back here and destroy it… at least that's what I _think_ we have to do."

"Man, if it _was_ Ace, you think he would've given us more of a clue to what it is he wants us to do," Nami groaned.

"N-now hold on!" Usopp stuttered out as they all headed to the doors. "Just who is this thing supposed to look like?" he asked.

"Don't know," Zoro told him, "I already told you everything that I heard. I don't know if that was Ace's ghost or not, but something tells me that wasn't a dream."

"Wait a minute! So you mean to tell me that we just have to go stumbling around until we find the monster and bring it back here?" Usopp cried out in panic.

"You have any better ideas?" Sanji asked in annoyance.

Usopp gulped as he thought it all over. Sure, he was terrified at the thought of what they might find… but after seeing some of those memories, he knew that he wouldn't be able to live with himself if he didn't at least help out here. "O-ok…" he said. "I don't want to do this… but if we can get Luffy back I'll do it! The Great Master Usopp always looks out for his friends after all!"

"Yohohoho! That's the spirit Usopp-san!" Brook cheered happily as Zoro was the first out the door and glanced around the forest. In the darkness, this dark forest reminded him almost of Thriller Bark… he tried his best to ignore it as he went on ahead. But as soon as they all stepped outside the ruins something happened.

The next step that Zoro took, everything around faded and started to shift around violently in a whirl of colored smoke. And the next thing that they knew was that the sun was out and there was a bright blue sky above them. The dark forest and old ruins were gone and instead they were all in a town with bright cobblestone streets and beautiful buildings on either side of them—mostly houses but with the occasional shop.

"What the Hell?" Sanji gasped, dropping his cigarette. "What just happened? Call me crazy but wasn't it the middle of the night just a second ago?"

"And weren't we in a forest?" Chopper cried out, shifting to his Kung-fu point, suddenly anxious.

"No…" Nami gasped out, her eyes wide as she recognized where they were, "This is… but it can't be…"

"But it is," Zoro said to her, his hand still cautiously on his swords, "It's Orange Town."

"Wait, you two been here?" Usopp asked them startled.

"Only once, but I didn't forget it," Zoro said, glancing around. "This town was where Luffy and I met up with Nami."

"It's also where we fought Buggy," Nami added darkly.

"Buggy?" Chopper asked in confusion.

"He was the infamous Pirate Clown," she answered him dully.

"A clown?" Franky repeated with a sweatdrop. "You're kidding right?"

"Wish she was," Sanji said, remembering how ridiculous the pirate looked when he saw him at Loguetown.

"And this is the same guy who was part of the Pirate King's crew right?" Robin asked politely, "The same pirate who was named a Warlord in the last two years?"

"Yeah that's… hey wait a minute," Nami said staring at her, "You're saying that Buggy was made into one of the Warlords?!"

"Yes," she answered coolly. "Apparently, he replaced Jinbe after the war two years ago."

Nami, Zoro, and Sanji all stared at her—having actually seen the clown themselves—and they couldn't believe that.

"Please tell me you're kidding," Zoro said, sure she was joking.

"That idiot replaced Jinbe-chan?" Nami asked, looking ready to collapse.

Sanji sighed as he quickly let another match and cigarette. He puffed on it to calm his nerves before he said, "Well, word got out about his connection to Roger. So I guess that the Government thought to try and make him an ally."

"It's only because of that," Nami said shaking her head. "That idiot's nothing."

"Ahhh… excuse me," Brook said in confusion, "But what is wrong here?"

As Nami looked ready to go into a long rant about what an idiot Buggy was, Usopp interrupted. "What I want to know is what's going on!" he demanded. "If this really is a memory, then how are we watching it? I thought we were out of that creepy hole!"

"We are," Robin answered as she calmly walked over to the building and slowly reached out to touch it. "This is different," she said softly, while her hand did pass through the stone, it was different… it was suddenly cool to the touch as well.

"Damn," Sanji cursed as he looked around, touching one of the passing windows and it felt almost like his hand was passing through water. "What's going on here?"

Chopper sniffed the air cautiously. He could feel a light breeze coming from somewhere as well as smell all sorts of scents like flowers and fresh air… he could hardly smell anything before in the last few memories.

"Just when I thought we were getting the hang of this," Franky said looking around. "What the hell is this?"

"I think it makes sense," Robin said turning back to look at Zoro. "Zoro, didn't you say that the creature was changing the island around?"

"Yeah," he answered, gritting his teeth as he looked, "Something about changing the island into pieces of memories."

"I see," she said frowning to herself, "If that's the case, then it's changed the entire island into more of Luffy's memories in order to hide itself. And if it has taken the form of someone from Luffy's past, then that would make sense to do so."

"It's easy to hide when you blend in," Sanji finished for her, now understanding.

"And since we're back in the real world, I suppose it would make sense that we are able to feel more, but still not able to really touch anything.

"Wait," Chopper said, "So we have to go hopping through more of Luffy's memories?"

"Looks like it," Franky said glancing around.

"The last memory was when you two set off," Sanji said to Zoro, "So this is where you came to next?"

"We sailed around for awhile," Zoro said, struggling to remember. It took him a few days to really get used to Luffy's company. After travelling around on his own for so long, having someone else with him was… awkward to say the least. But after a while, he had started to enjoy Luffy's straightforward personality. "Until Luffy was dumb enough to get captured by a bird," he added, "And I followed him here."

"A bird?" Robin repeated in mild surprise.

"Yeah," Zoro said, thinking back, "We were starving, and he spotted this giant bird and when he tried to grab it… it carried him off here."

"What a complete idiot," Usopp sighed. What had he been thinking?

"Man, it must've been hard for you to find him," Brook said, knowing how Zoro's sense of direction was completely off.

"Not really," Zoro admitted. After he ran into those three loser pirates at sea, getting them to row in the direction Luffy had been carried off in had been easy enough. They just kept going until they reached shore. And almost as soon as he landed he heard the explosions and just knew where to start looking.

Suddenly they heard a scream breaking their thoughts and turned around in time to see that someone was running towards them. Nami gasped, realizing who it was. There she was, two years ago, with a map clamped tightly in her hands and running as fast as she could from a group of men chasing after her—each one looking angry and carrying a sword.

"Why those bastards! Ganging up on my sweet Nami!" Sanji yelled in fury charging ahead. "Don't worry my dear, your brave knight is here to resu…" but before he could finish, Nami ran right through him and the words got stuck in his throat. Moaning miserably, he fell to his knees, crying the whole way.

"I guess we still can't touch the people," Robin offered obviously as Nami ran closer towards them.

"What'd you do to make those guys so angry?" Usopp demanded of their Nami who laughed awkwardly.

"I kinda stole their map?" she offered, sounding more like a question. But just then, there was a large explosion in the air and next thing they knew, something fell from the sky between Nami and the pirates—causing them all to stop dead in their tracks.

"What was that?!" Nami in the memory screamed, staring back at the crater.

"My future captain," Nami answered, now understanding what happened. "That idiot…"

"Who would've thought," Brook laughed as the dust cleared, to show that it was indeed Luffy sitting there. And he was happily talking to himself.

"Finally, I'm safe now," Luffy moaned as he stood up and dusted himself, gazing around him in interest. "And what just happened to me was awesome."

Zoro rolled his eyes. Back on Sky Island, he had been carried off by a giant South Bird and it was anything but awesome. "Of course he would've thought that was cool."

Luffy was gazing around, trying to figure out where he was and what to do next. Nami and the pirates were staring at him with their jaws open… while the present-day Nami gazed at her past self sadly. She looked at the shirt she was wearing—how it was now hiding Arlong's mark. And to think… if Luffy hadn't come falling out of the sky… she'd probably still be serving Arlong… or worse… she and her village would be dead.

"So that's how you two officially met?" Robin asked Nami, noticing the sad look in her friend's eyes.

"Yeah," she said softly, feeling a rush of shame come over her as she watched the dark look in her past self's face. She saw an opportunity to escape, and she took it without a second thought. She watched how she walked to him, as Luffy was whining about how hungry he was.

Clasping her hands together, she said in an excited voice, "Oh, hey Boss, thanks for coming to save me!"

"Boss?" Chopper said, tilting his head in confusion. "But I thought that you guys didn't know each other here."

"We didn't," Nami admitted sadly. "I'm not exactly proud of it. If Luffy hadn't been so strong, I think I could've gotten him killed here."

"What do you…?" Brook began but Luffy was already looking up at Nami's past self.

"Who are you?" he asked her, but instead of answering, she turned and ran away, calling back, "They're all yours now, Boss! Have fun!"

"Hey! That girl's getting away!" one of the pirates yelled angrily.

"That's ok," the second said, looking at Luffy with a rather evil grin. "We've got her Boss now."

"Oh, so that's what you meant," Robin answered, "You made him a decoy."

"You're in trouble kid," the third pirate said, holding up his sword. "You should've let your crony fend for herself."

The men who were chasing Nami glared at Luffy, who was still watching Nami run down the street. But Luffy finally noticed them and asked bluntly, as if he didn't hear what they said, "Do you guys know anywhere good to eat around here?"

"Luffy, stop worrying about your stomach here and just beat them up," Usopp yelled, standing close to him, and tried yelling in his ear.

But, of course, Luffy was completely deaf to him as one of the pirates came closer and held up a fist. "Foods the least of your worries now!" he yelled smugly as he threw a punch. Now they knew that it couldn't have hurt him, but the impact of it was enough to knock the straw hat off. They all knew right away that these guys weren't going to be let off the hook for that as Luffy watched his hat go flying off.

His face filled with anger, Luffy punched him right back and sent him crashing into the ground. He was out cold before Luffy caught his hat and placed it back on his head, warning them to keep their hands off it.

"After seeing what it means to him, I don't blame him for being so protective of it," Franky said, his heart hurting at the memory of seeing Shanks entrust it to him.

"Yeah! Show those guys no mercy!" Chopper and Usopp cheered on as the two other pirates charged, ready to take him out. Of course, it was no contest. Luffy took them both out with one punch each… now all three of them were lying unconscious on the ground like broken toys.

"I see what you mean," Usopp said, staring back at Nami, "you could've gotten him killed if he wasn't so freaking strong!"

"Wow!" Nami exclaimed.

"Yeah, wow," Usopp said, now glaring at her, "But do you know that if that was anyone else he could've…"

"That wasn't me," Nami said, pointing up to the roof. "I mean it _was_ me… but that me!"

He looked, and sure enough there was Nami looking over the roof edge, down at Luffy. She stared at the beaten pirates before she called to Luffy, "You're really strong!"

Luffy looked up at her as she jumped down to the balcony below her, calling out in an impressed voice, "Even though both of them had sabers you beat them barehanded."

"Hey, you're the girl who set me up. Who are you?" Luffy asked; though he didn't sound angry, merely curious.

"I'm a talented thief who steals strictly from pirates," Nami answered him. "The name's Nami. Hey, wanna team up with me?"

"You were asking Luffy to join you?" Chopper asked in surprise.

"Well, I didn't know he was looking for crewmates himself at the time," Nami explained. "I wanted him to help me steal."

"In other words you wanted to take advantage of him and then leave with all the treasure?" Zoro said while Sanji glared at him.

"How dare you accuse Nami-swan of something like that," Sanji snapped at him.

"Actually," she said, looking embarrassed, "That's about right."

"Oh, Nami, you're so cute even when you're deceiving people," Sanji swooned, hearts back in his eyes.

"Um, thanks anyway lady but I think I'll pass," Luffy answered her coolly as he started walking away. Nami blinked down in surprise at that.

"Hold on!" she yelled after him as she followed him, "At least think about it first!"

"I never met someone who turned down the chance to get treasure," Nami laughed as they followed after the two, "I guess that should've been my first clue that he wasn't normal."

Luffy suddenly stopped, his hands over his stomach. "I just remembered…" he said to himself before he fell to his knees as if he was too weak to stand up. "I'm so hungry," he whined out.

"Well, come with me and I'll find you something to eat?" Nami offered him.

That got his attention, Luffy bolted up and stared at her hungrily, which took her aback. "Yeah? Are you serious!?"

"You're unusually generous here," Zoro muttered to her suspiciously.

"I thought he'd be more willing to listen if I helped him out," Nami said as she watched herself snap out of it and led him down the street to one of the bigger houses.

"Wow, so do you live here, Nami?" Chopper asked her interested.

"Not quite," she answered, "I was just staying there while I tried to collect treasure. No one else was living there so I don't think there was any problem."

"Treasure for what?" Chopper asked innocently, but Nami didn't answer as she led the way, following the two to one of the larger rooms where Luffy was helping himself to all the food he could find.

"Yummy!" Luffy yelled happily, shoving food into his mouth with a satisfied expression. After a few mouthfuls, he finally turned back to Nami and asked, "So do you live here in this big house all by yourself?"

"This isn't my house I'm just staying here for the time being," Nami told him casually, as if he just asked what the weather was like today as she sat on the edge of the table, watching him eat. "Everyone's left this town because of Captain Buggy."

"Again with this Buggy guy?" Chopper said, "Is he really that bad of a guy?"

"Well, I guess to normal people he's dangerous," Nami admitted thinking it over, "But really, he's an idiot."

"So this guy came to this town and basically took over? Forcing all the citizens out?" Franky asked, hating pirates like them.

"Rather he was using this town for target practice," Nami confessed, remembering of those Buggy Balls and all the destruction he had caused.

"Oh, so you're just a petty thief," Luffy summed up for them all.

"He got it sooner than I thought," Zoro said in full agreement.

"Shut moss head if you know what's good for you!" Sanji threatened.

"How rude," memory Nami huffed at him, "I only steal from people who deserve it! Pirates! So don't compare me to some scumbag, petty thief."

"A thief's a thief as far as I'm concerned," Luffy said after he managed a big swallow of bread.

"I agree with you there," Zoro nodded with him and Sanji went and tried to kick him in the head.

As the two began to fight, Nami tuned them all out as she watched her past admit to Luffy, "My goal is to earn one-hundred million beli's, no matter what I have to do or how long it takes."

Luffy looked at her curiously. "What do you need so many beri's for anyway?"

"It's a secret," Nami said bluntly, clearly letting him know that she didn't want to talk about it as Luffy went back to the food.

"Geez, I know you love money and everything sis, but really, what's it all for?" Franky asked.

Nami looked away, not wanting to think about it. "I'm sure that you'll find out," she admitted sadly as the others continued to look at her. "But I can tell you that money wasn't for me."

"But if not you then…?" Brook began, but he stopped. He could see that Nami was looking more upset by the moment. So instead he asked if he could see her panties instead. It worked to take her mind off that as she gave him a hard punch in the head and knocked him to the ground, yelling at him to shut up.

"But with this chart Grand Line, the one-hundred million is definitely a possibility," memory Nami said as she tucked the chart safely under her shirt.

She said the magic words. As soon as Luffy registered what she said he whispered, "A chart?" he then looked up at Nami and asked, "So you must be a navigator?"

Nami gave him a proud smile and said, with no hints of humility, "I'm the most skilled navigator you're ever likely to meet."

"As modest as ever I see," Robin teased her with a smile.

She laughed, her hand behind her head and admitted, "Well, it's true."

Zoro and Usopp both shared a dark look, knowing that she honestly hasn't changed a bit since then. And it didn't help that Sanji was there praising her beauty and brains all at once. "I still don't get how we got stuck with these two," Zoro sighed to them.

But then Luffy stood up excitedly.

"Oh, wow! That's perfect. Then how about you join my crew?" he asked eagerly, "I've been looking to recruit a navigator!"

Nami's eyes lit up in excitement. "Really?"

"Sure! You can be the navigator for our pirate crew!" Luffy exclaimed happily.

At once, Nami's happy expression turned sour. It was startling how her mood had shifted to a much colder expression with her smile quickly turning into a frown. She glared hard at Luffy and said firmly, "NO!"

"Geez, what'd say?" Franky asked her.

"Pirate," she muttered with a sigh. "In those days, I was convinced that all pirates were rotten to the core."

Luffy was looking at her in surprised as Nami sighed. "I didn't realize you were a pirate," she said darkly.

"Yeah, I made an important promise," Luffy said as he took off his hat and stared at it fondly, "I promised the guy who gave me this hat that I'd form a crew and become the greatest pirate ever."

"Yeah, I see that now," Nami muttered to herself as her past self slammed her hands on the table angrily. "There's nothing in the world that I despise more than pirates!" she almost screamed at him, "I only love money and tangerines!"

"Nami-san," Brook said in surprise.

"I know," Nami sighed, "I see that not all pirates are the same. But you see I suffered a lot because of a certain pirate crew for a long time. And all the pirates that I stolen from were the same as them. I didn't think that there were any good pirates out there."

"Really?" Chopper asked, "You only like money and tangerines?"

"This was years ago Chopper," she answered with a smile. "I've changed a lot since then. And I'm honestly happy here."

"Oh, that's good!" Chopper said happily.

"Come on," Luffy whined, "be our navigator."

"I said no," Nami said harshly as she walked towards the window, refusing to say anything else.

Luffy looked after her before he shrugged it off and went back to his food, "Your lost."

"Wait… did he just give up?" Usopp said startled. "Like that?"

"Yeah, with me he wouldn't stop bugging me about joining," Sanji said in bewilderment. "And he wouldn't let moss head here off the hook."

"True, but let's not forget that he barely knew Nami here," Robin reminded them. "Even with Zoro, he was impressed when he heard about Zoro's character. But he just met her and she _did_ set him up before they even introduced themselves. And she made it clear that she didn't want anything to do with a pirate. Like I said, Luffy wouldn't actually _force_ someone to join if they truly didn't want to join."

"That's about it," Nami said, feeling a little bit relieved at that.

Nami continued to stare out the window as the present Nami sighed. She remembered seeing Buggy's henchmen out there looking for her and came up with a stupid plan that almost got them al killed. And sure enough, she watched herself look back to Luffy with a wicked grin… mean that she had a plan to make her rich.

"What are you planning here?" Usopp asked, feeling nervous for Luffy as she walked back to the table—like how a cat would when it was stalking a bird.

"Nothing good," Zoro said rolling his eye, already aware of where these two were gonna end up. So it was Nami who got them almost killed and blown apart by Buggy… he had been sure that it was Luffy.

"I know, I'm not proud of it," Nami muttered softly. Luffy had unknowingly helped her out by taking out those thugs for her. She knew that stunt could've gotten him killed, but at the time her hatred for pirates justified everything.

"I guess I might consider joining you but only if you agree to certain conditions," Nami said with a sweet tone that got Luffy's attention.

"Really? I'll do anything," he said at once happily.

"Did he have to say that?" Usopp said, quickly muttering a prayer for Luffy.

"He's toast," Franky nodded with him.

"He's too naïve," Robin sighed, "He trusts too easily."

"That's gotten him into a lot of trouble," Zoro agreed at once.

"But what did you want from him, Nami-san?" Brook asked curiously.

Nami's past self answered that as she pulled out a length of rope, "Well then, I want you to come with me to meet Buggy the Clown. But first…"

Faster than blinking, she had Luffy tied up and held up a long length of it like a leash.

"Why'd you have to tie me up?" Luffy asked curiously.

"Luffy you idiot," Zoro sighed.

"The rope's just for appearances," Nami lied.

"If that's not a lie, I don't know what is," Usopp said, looking ready to fall over. How could Luffy be so dense? It was obvious that she was going to get them in trouble.

"Hey, just because I wanted to use him to get to Buggy's treasure didn't mean that I wanted him killed," Nami snapped at them all.

"Well, ok then," Luffy said agreeably, "I've been looking forward to meeting some other pirates. So let's going!"

"Just hold your horses, what's the big rush?" she complained as they left the house. Nami felt terrible as she watched the excited expression on Luffy's face. Like he was a child who thought was gonna get a treat. Nami hated all pirates… after she lost her mother to Arlong, she had believed that all pirates were the same. But it was after meeting Luffy here did she see that just because you call yourself a pirate didn't mean that you were bad.

"So where ah… where are we going…?" Brook asked.

"To the Drinker's Bar," Nami sighed.

"Sounds like my kinda place," Zoro said to himself. Luffy didn't complain the whole time as he walked happily along, like how a dog would. No one said anything else until they came to Buggy's place just on the roof of the bar… they were all taken aback by it aside from Nami and Zoro.

"Is the circus in town?" Brook asked interestedly. "I always loved the circus, yohohoho!"

"Well, believe me, this isn't the type of circus you want to go to," Zoro said darkly as he looked at the pirates all running around performing tricks or drinking.

"I don't know about you guys but I can't take these guys seriously," Franky muttered staring around them. "I mean… when I think of scary pirates, clowns and balloons aren't what comes to my mind."

Nami sighed in agreement, as she looked to the tent where Buggy was sitting.

"That's Buggy?" Chopper asked hesitantly.

"He was on board the Pirate King's crew?" Usopp asked with another sweatdrop.

"Huh?" Brook asked as he watched Nami come forward with Luffy. The Buggy Pirates stopped partying long enough to look up at them in surprise. As soon as they were in front of Buggy, Nami shoved Luffy to the ground before she stuck her tongue out at him.

"You're scaring me now Nami," Chopper whispered fearfully.

"That is a cruel thing to do to someone," Usopp said with a gulp, now moving cautiously away from her, as if thinking that she'd do the same thing to him.

She looked down at her feet sadly, feeling more grateful to Luffy than ever. If it had been anyone else, they never would've forgiven her for something like this. Who she was back then, she wasn't proud of it. But at the same time, everything she did, she did for her village and she was proud of that.

"I've captured the real thief captain Buggy the Clown and here's your chart back!" called her own voice, and it snapped her out of it as she watched her past walk over to Buggy with the chart.

Buggy smirked as he watched her, "Not that I don't appreciate it, by why the sudden change of heart little girl?"

She handed the chart to him and stepped back as she said shrugged casually, "I had another fight with my boss and I just can't take it anymore." She then looked up innocently and asked benevolently, "So I thought I'd see if I could join _your_ crew instead."

Buggy looked at her as the rest of his crew gulped down, looking nervous.

"What's with them?" Chopper asked confused.

"Not all pirates appreciate being stolen from," Robin answered, knowing how brutal pirates could be. "Even though Nami brought the chart back to him, she was still the one who stole it in the first place. Buggy might've still killed her to make an example for others."

Chopper screamed in terror.

"Don't worry," Nami said, looking at him. "He bought the lie hook, line, and sinker."

No sooner had she said that did Buggy start snorting out in laughter. "You're fed up huh? I must admit you're an amusing girl," he said grinning evilly at her, "I like you. Of course you can join my crew!"

Nami just continued to smile at him, even as Luffy was shoved into stone and metal cage behind them.

"Huh, so that's how he got locked in that thing," Zoro muttered to himself.

"It's a great day to be a pirate," Buggy said before looking at Nami, "Girl… what do you call yourself?"

"I'm Nami," she answered happily and he laughed again and declared a welcome party for their newest crewmate.

Cheers were sounded everywhere as a party erupted, bringing out food and booze. That was when the party really came out.

"This Buggy guy may not be the best example of a pirate," Franky said looking at the drinking pirates, "But you gotta hand it to him. He knows how to party."

"That I can't deny," Zoro said, looking longingly at the booze that everyone was guzzling down. As for Luffy, he spent the time trying to stretch his arm out from his bounds to grab some meat, but it was like how he couldn't reach for the glass back in Bluejam's hideout. He kept falling short. Then there was Nami, who was drinking with Buggy, her eyes were narrowed as she looked around at the partying pirates.

"Why do I not like that look in your eyes?" Franky asked.

Nami shrugged, "The best way to steal from a pirate is when they're drunk. I was just waiting for them to pass out before I steal their treasure."

"Now listen up!" Buggy suddenly cried out, getting everyone's attention. "Men, it's time to prepare the Buggy Ball!"

"Buggy Ball?" Sanji repeated at a lost.

"Think of it as like an exploding cannonball," Nami said. In her opinion, that really was Buggy's only weapon. Even with his Chop Chop abilities, he wasn't much of a threat… at least not anymore. She was sure that even she could take him on easily by herself now.

Just then, one of the men heaved out an enormous cannon while another brought a bigger than normal red cannonball with Buggy's mark on it.

"I'm guessing that's the Buggy Ball?" Usopp asked as they carefully loaded the cannon.

"What gave it away genius?" Nami asked sarcastically.

"All set captain," the pirate said as they pointed the cannon towards the town.

Past Nami looked nervous as she asked with a slight stutter, "W-what are you going to do with that thing?"

"Just observe," Buggy answered, with a horrible evil look on his clown face—giving a justifiable reason to really be afraid of clowns, "the awesome might of the Buggy Ball. Light it."

And with once it was fired… it didn't just bang like most cannonballs did, it went off in a giant fireball. The blast was blinding as it struck the houses, going through them all like a stack of dominos would. Shrapnel was sent flying off in all directions as the boom was large enough to deafen their ears… and when the light died down they stared at the entire block that was destroyed. There wasn't anything but giant piles of splinters.

"How terrible!" Brook whispered, staring at the damage. "What kind of person would destroy a person's home like that?!"

"This is what most pirates are these days," Nami whispered as Robin nodded dully.

Brook shook his head in shame. Pirates these days weren't anything like when he was still sailing before. Yes, they loved treasure, but it was all about the adventure! Not mindless destruction!

"But man," Franky said in amazement, "Just what were those balls made of? Not that they hold anything to the things that I've made on the Sunny…" he added.

"Don't know," Nami sighed. "But I think that's when the party ended."

"That was flashy," Buggy laughed as he went on, "With these Buggy Balls and the power of the Devil Fruit, I should have no problem conquering the Grand Line!"

"He's kidding right?" Franky asked hesitantly.

"You think that someone who once sailed with Roger would have a better idea to how the world is," Zoro sighed. "But Nami was right… he's just an idiot. I think that his ego is almost as big as that nose of his."

"And that's the biggest nose I've seen," Chopper said before looking up at Usopp, "Yours is probably the longest though, Usopp."

"What?" Usopp cried out in outrage. "My mother gave me this nose I'll have you know!"

"Huh?" Luffy suddenly yelled out, gaining everyone's attention. "But it's _my_ destiny to conquer the Grand Line!"

They all stared at him.

"You know…?" Sanji said, "That sounds kinda pathetic with him stuck inside a cage like that…"

"Yep," Zoro agreed, before he blinked; horrified that he actually agreed with the crap cook.

However Buggy wasn't amused… he was glaring at Luffy with annoyance and it only got worse when Luffy continued, "And then I'm gonna become King of the Pirates."

"Shut up you idiot!" Nami yelled at him, looking scared that he went too far.

But instead of getting angry, Buggy started laughing. "I can see why you're sick of him, Nami," he said to her.

Gulping, she nodded quickly. "Yeah, I know. He never takes anything seriously, he thinks that life's a big game! He acts like a little kid!" she said, sounding nervous as she agreed with him.

"I see," Buggy agreed with her as another evil look came to his face. "In that case… how about I give you a Buggy Ball to blow away your old boss?"

"You mean…?" Usopp croaked out at the thought.

"He meant to kill him," Nami nodded as she watched her past self's eyes widen in horror at the thought. While she didn't like pirates, the idea of sinking that low was too much for her.

"It will be a great opportunity to prove your loyalty to me, your new captain," Buggy went on as his men came running up with another ball. "MEN?!" he cried as he turned the heavy cannon was ready.

"That's all right, captain," Nami quickly unable to hide the fear in her tone. "We don't need to finish him off quite yet. Let's get back to the welcoming party and have more fun."

"What was going on through your head here?" Robin asked her.

"Mostly _'what the hell did I get myself into'_ or something like that," Nami answered grimly.

"You wouldn't really have…?" Chopper asked anxiously.

"Of course not!" Nami told him hotly. "I have standards you know!"

But Buggy was smiling down at her in a horrible, twisted way. He looked quite mad as he confessed, "This is my idea of having more fun." And without another word he handed Nami a box of matches while the rest of the crew cheered for her to fire.

"I'm curious to know how you got out of this," Robin said.

"You better think of something, Nami-san," Brook said nervously glancing around. "I don't like these people!"

"You and me both," Nami said, but she turned to Luffy, knowing that he was about to give her some real advice here. Luffy just gazed at Nami calmly—it was impossible to know what was going through his mind.

"How dare that shitty bastard try to force a woman to do something so disgusting?" Sanji hollered furiously.

But Nami just stood there, staring at the scene in front of her. She remembered trying to think of what she would do. She knew that if she didn't fire she'd be killed… but if she did… she'd forever have blood on her hands.

"Hey! You're not wimping out on me are you?" Buggy yelled impatiently behind her past self and she jumped at his voice.

"You're shaking I see," Zoro said softly, looking at past Nami's hands.

Luffy saw it as well. "What's the matter?" he asked and she froze at his voice, as if forgetting that he could speak. "Your hands are shaking," he pointed out and she gave him an angry look. "This is what happens when you take on pirates with half-assed resolve," Luffy stated calmly.

"You know he's taking this well," Franky stated, "He's tied up and locked in a cage where they could kill him at any moment, but he's calm here."

"Because I don't think that he believed that you had what it takes to kill him, Nami-san," Brook stated.

Nami smiled a little at that, making her feel better.

"Resolve to do what?" Nami suddenly demanded, "To kill someone like it's nothing? Is that a pirate's resolve?"

"No," Luffy said as a smile appeared on his face, as if testing her. "You gotta be willing to risk your _own_ life."

Nami stared at him—a strange look suddenly entered her eyes. One of the pirates finally got tired of waiting and marched over to light the match. But as his hand went to the fuse, Nami's eyes darkened. Here it was…

To stand back and do nothing… or risk her life for what she knew was right?

Nami smiled as she watched herself pull out her staff and finally took charge. As soon as he was out on the floor did everyone freeze at her daring; the pirates, Buggy, and even Luffy were all surprised by what she did… but none so much as Nami herself.

"Oh crap," she whispered, staring at her staff and the unconscious pirate.

"I knew it," Brook said in relief.

"Nami, what's the meaning of this outrage?" Buggy demanded.

"I'm sorry!" Nami quickly apologized to him.

"What's wrong!? Just shoot him already!" Buggy screamed at her.

"Huh? So now you've decided to save me?" Luffy questioned behind her in confusion.

"Don't be so stupid!" Nami yelled at him as she looked back at him for a moment. "I'm not doing this for you, you idiot!" she screamed, holding her staff up, finally ready to fight. "I just don't wanna lower myself to these inhuman pirates!"

Some of the Straw Hats stared at her, some of them unsure to what she was saying…

"Ok, thanks anyway," Luffy said lightly, still not looking bothered.

That seemed to be enough for Nami as she finally declared for them all to hear, "Pirates took the life of a person very dear to me! I'll never be one of them!"

"Nami…" Robin said softly, looking back at her as she kept her eyes straight forward, her own hands shaking a little.

"Nami is that true?" Chopper asked quietly and she nodded.

"My mother…" she whispered in hardly more than a croak, "Was killed by pirates when I was ten years old. That's why I hated pirates so much."

Her eyes started to burn a little at the thought but she blinked hard. She thought about her mother all the time… she missed her every single day and seeing this was just a painful reminder to what she had been forced to do by herself for so long.

"Nami-swan…" Sanji whispered gazing at her sad expression.

"It's alright," she told him, raising her head high. "It's hard… sometimes it hurts more than others. But this isn't my life anymore. That's what matters."

Franky sniffled a little as Luffy understood and said, "I see…" but that was when he screamed out, for the first time losing his cool, "AHHHHHHH! NAMI! THE FUSE!"

Nami's eyes widened when she looked down, and sure enough it was lit and burning fast.

"Oh, crap," Sanji said, trying to think of something he could do to help, but he might as well just be blowing air for all the good he could do.

"So you think that pirates are just inhuman filth do you?!" Buggy screamed furiously as he then hollered, "Get her, men!"

At once several of his crew charged, ready to attack. Nami stood back, blocking that one attack, but when she tried to swing back, they jumped up—missing it completely.

"Cowards!" Brook called furiously, "All of them against one woman?"

"They're all dead if I ever meet up with them!" Sanji declared, fire licking his body. "I'm gonna break each and every one of their faces!"

Luffy was looking every which way, chanting water over and over as Nami finally dropped the staff and went running towards the cannon. She grabbed hold of fuse with her bare hands…

"Nami!" Chopper yelled when he saw her screaming in pain, "Don't you realize the serious burns you could've gotten from that?!"

"Nami! Oh, no were you alright?" Sanji cried out, looking terrified.

"I was fine," she smiled, "That was nothing!"

"Watch out!" Luffy warned as Buggy's henchmen charged from behind, ready to kill. Nami closed her eyes, ready for the blows to strike. Sanji went charging ahead—memories be damned! He was going to protect Nami!

"Relax Nosebleed," Zoro said, smiling as he looked back to see someone jumping to the roof and charge at them. "Let someone else handle it."

Just like that, the pirates were all scattered everywhere and screaming in pain as a familiar figure jumped between Nami and the Buggy Pirates.

"Zoro!" Chopper screamed out happily, eyes bright as he watched the former Pirate Hunter live up to his name.

"Hey now," past Zoro said causally, not even batting an eye as he took down the pirates, "it's not very nice for all of you to gang up on the poor girl."

"You are so cool, Zoro-san," Brook said amazed as Zoro smirked at that.

"Zoro!" Luffy exclaimed happily.

"You could've come sooner you know moss head and saved Nami some pain by taking out that cannon," Sanji suddenly complained.

"What?" he yelled at him, "I don't see you doing anything!"

But his past self looked back to Nami and asked, "You hurt?"

She stared at him, not really registering what he said, so he asked again, "I said, are you hurt?"

"N-no, I'm fine I think," she croaked out.

"Wow, you sound almost concerned," Usopp said to Zoro.

"That was before I realized what a manipulative witch she was," he answered and Nami glared at him as Sanji threatened to poison his food.

"What a relief," Luffy sighed gratefully, "I'm glad you found us. Now hurry up and come get me out of here!"

"How do you keep getting yourself into these situations?" Zoro asked his captain, rolling his eyes as he hoisted his sword over his shoulder and headed over to the cage. "First a bird flies off with you and now I find you trapped in a cage?"

"It's an interesting story actually," Luffy answered.

"Yeah, and now that I finally know what happened," Zoro sighed, "I'm almost sorry I asked."

"I'm more surprised that you found the place," Franky said in a teasing tone and Zoro shot him a deeply annoyed look.

"You all have something to say to me?" he snapped at them all as Buggy spoke up again.

"So, you're Zoro," he said smugly, "If you're here for my head you've got the struggle before you."

Zoro shook his head at how careless he had been. It didn't matter if Buggy was a Devil Fruit user or not… to think he let his guard down for even a moment was shameful. His past self didn't look the least bit interested, and he let him know it. "No, not interested," he said. "I gave up pirate hunting. I'm here for my friend."

"Zoro you're so cool!" Chopper cheered on in complete awe.

But Buggy didn't seem annoyed or relieved. He was still smiling that ugly smile and said, "But _I'm _interested though. Killing you will boast to my reputation."

"As if he could kill him," Usopp said smugly. "He's dead meat if he tries!"

But Zoro stared at himself, almost trying to will him to pay attention that something was wrong. But instead, he looked back at Buggy and threatened, "If you try, you'll die."

"As expected, bro," Franky laughed, looking forward to seeing him take care of Buggy.

Buggy took out several daggers and held them like claws in his hands as he laughed louder than ever. "Oh, is that so?"

Zoro sighed in annoyance. "I tried to warn you, but… oh well."

Robin looked over to their swordsman and realized that he was looking embarrassed at this. Did something happen? She couldn't see someone like Buggy ever getting the upper hand of a fight… unless…

"Die flashily!" Buggy yelled as he charged Zoro, who pulled out his swords. The battle was over instantly… Zoro cut him into pieces and scattered his body parts across the roof.

Usopp, Brook, and Chopper all screamed at that, never believing that Zoro could've hacked someone to pieces like that.

"You didn't have to go that far did you, Zoro-san?" Brook croaked out as he watched Buggy lying there.

Past Zoro merely put his swords away, not even looking at the body. "That wasn't much of a fight was it?" he asked.

"Wow, he's weak," Luffy said, sounding a little disappointed. "Great job, Zoro."

But there was something wrong…

"Wait, didn't you say this guy was a Warlord?" Franky asked Robin suddenly, "How can he be a Warlord if he's dead?"

"Because he's not," Nami explained, "He can't die by a swordsman no matter how hard you try."

"But how is that possible?" Brook asked startled.

"No way," past Nami whispered in amazement before they all noticed that the Buggy Pirates began to chuckle to themselves darkly. Each one with a depraved grin on their face… the look gave them all goosebumps because it was uncanny the resemblance… it almost reminded them of Bluejam and his crew when they caught Luffy and Ace in the fire.

"Hey, why are they laughing?" Luffy asked, not liking this either, and Robin couldn't help but wonder if he thought of Bluejam as well as he looked at them nervously.

"Their captain is lying dead on the ground and yet they're still laughing?" Nami asked, also looking unnerved, "What's going on?"

"Yeah, is he dead or not?" Chopper cried out, now feeling fear racking his body.

"Fellas? What do you find so damn funny?" Zoro demanded, and Usopp, Brook, and Chopper all screamed in terror as Buggy suddenly drifted up behind him, just floating in midair.

"HE'S A GHOST!" Brook screamed in terror.

"A ZOMBIE!" Usopp and Chopper cried, hugging each other.

"Now there's something you don't see every day," Robin said in mild surprise. "He ate a Devil Fruit…?"

"Right," Nami nodded as the disembodied hand holding a knife suddenly floated up as well and flew at Zoro.

"Zoro look out!" Chopper cried, but too late. The knife went right through his lower left side…

"Zoro!" Luffy cried out in horror.

"Buggy's still alive!?" memory Nami screamed out, looking ready to run screaming from what she was seeing.

"I can't believe that coward stabbed you like that with your back turned," Brook screamed out, "That was such a disgusting move."

"Though it pains me to admit it, I agree," Sanji muttered as he watched past Zoro yell in pain.

Zoro closed his eye. He was lucky that he got away from this with nothing more than a flesh wound. Buggy was arrogant and stupid… that's the only reason that he didn't kill him when he had the chance. Zoro felt the need to kick himself. Again, here was proof that he honestly had no idea to how big the world was. Even if he didn't know about Buggy's powers, he should've remained on guard, always aware of his surroundings…

"The Chop Chop Fruit," Buggy explained as he put himself back together. "That's the name of the Devil Fruit's that's given me my powers! I'm a Chop Chop person and now I can never be defeated by the sword!" he burst out laughing as Nami looked like she was about to faint.

"His limbs… reattached?!" she whispered in shock. "I always thought Devil Fruits were just a story that Pirates told!"

"There are over a hundred different types of Devil Fruits," Robin explained, "But rarely do you see one outside the Grand Line. So it is understandable…"

"But still, someone who can break apart in pieces?" Usopp hissed, shivering at the thought. "That's disgusting!"

"So he's a Chop Chop man?" Luffy asked from his cage, "That's pretty freaky."

"Like you're one to talk Rubberbrain," Sanji sighed.

"I didn't hit any vital organs, but that's a serious wound you have there!" Buggy said with a wide grin, fingering his knife, "So I'm guessing that I am the winner!"

"Only because you fought dirty!" Chopper screamed out, now running over to Zoro just as he fell to his knees and began to pant in pain, blood already soaking his side.

"That's not like you though, Zoro," Franky muttered, looking to the one-eyed swordsman next to him. "What happened?" But Zoro didn't have to answer… his memory self did.

"I let my guard down," he hissed, breathing hard through gritted teeth, "Stupid mistake!"

"Couldn't have said it better myself," Zoro sighed, his hand still resting on his swords. "I can't believe I let myself get stabbed by such a weakling."

Sanji rolled his eyes. "You are such an idiot," he said.

"You say something Nosebleed?" he snapped back.

"Letting someone stabbing you in the back like that?" Sanji taunted, "That's just sad…"

But before they could get into another fight, Luffy couldn't take listening to Buggy laughing and his crew cheering another second. "Stabbing him in the back was a cowardly move," he roared in outrage, "YOU BIG NOSE!"

At once, all chanting and cheering stopped as the Buggy Pirates froze where they were, sweat pouring down their faces as they stared, terrified at Buggy. Buggy's eyes widen in rage.

"What's that you said?" Buggy hissed dangerously, looking ready to kill, "_Who_ has a big nose?!"

"Who does he think?" Usopp demanded, "If he doesn't like his nose why not just take it off?"

"Because I don't think that's a fake nose," Nami confessed.

"You mean he was _born_ with it?" Brook began before laughing.

"It's like fate itself was mocking him from the start," Robin muttered in amusement. But Buggy had enough as he threw his hand, which still held the knife, at Luffy.

"Luffy!" past Zoro called in panic, but Luffy had chopped down on it with his teeth, stopping it dead in its tracks.

"He always did have a powerful jaw," Chopper sighed in relief as Luffy declared that he was going to kick Buggy's ass as soon as he got out of that cage. And as if to prove his point, he bit down until he broke the knife's blade. But instead of scaring him, Buggy only continued to laugh, declaring that he was going to kill them all with his own hands.

"Right…" Franky sighed, "that would be humiliating, dying by Buggy's hands?"

Luffy however was laughing screaming out that he refused to die before he finally looked at Zoro and gave him an order. Possibly their first Captain—Swordsman order since they took down Ax-Hand Morgan… "Zoro, get up!"

"What!?" memory Zoro exclaimed in surprise, and they didn't blame him, how was he going to be able to fight with that injury?

"You better have a really good plan or else we're all dead?" past Nami yelled at him, "So what are you guys gonna do?!"

But Luffy didn't say anything as he continued to smile confidently, looking only at Zoro—and it was as if they were suddenly able to hear each other's thoughts. For a moment, Zoro continued to looked confused before a grin appeared on his own face; getting what Luffy wanted him to do.

"I gotcha, Captain," Zoro said with a smirk.

"Wait, what are you talking about?" Chopper asked him as past Nami became even more baffled and looked ready to fall over.

"Ignorant fool! Time to die!" Buggy screamed as he tried to attack Zoro again.

"Again, that's a cowardly move!" Brook screamed, but Zoro was back on his feet as he fought Buggy off, finally able to cut through him and ran past him.

"Your three sword style has no effect on me!" Buggy screamed as his body became whole again, "I've already told you…!" but he then realized that Zoro had run for the cannon. "Hey! Listen to when I'm talking to you!" he screamed back at him.

"Idiot," Sanji sighed, smacking himself in the forehead, "Stop talking and bragging already! Doesn't he see how much of an opening he left here?"

"I think that Buggy just liked to hear himself talk," Nami sighed.

"But what exactly are you planning…?" but Brook didn't get to finish his sentence for Zoro had run under the cannon's hand and pushed up on it. That was when he fully understood… they were gonna use Buggy's own weapon against him.

"EHHHHHH!" Chopper screamed in fear as he watched Zoro tear his own injury open farther. "Zoro! What were you thinking?!"

"Well, there wasn't much time to think," Zoro answered as he watched himself struggle under the weight. "I was only following Captain's orders…" and with one great big heave, he had succeeded in flipping the large cannon over to the opposite side and pointed it right at Buggy and his men.

And as soon as they saw that cannon head they screamed in fright as Zoro ordered Nami to hurry and light the fuse.

"Damn you moss head! How dare you treat Nami like that!?" Sanji yelled.

"You rather that we get killed here?" Zoro snapped at him in annoyance as Nami pulled the matches out and struck one.

"Wait!" Buggy screamed out in panic as Nami did what she was told. "Just wait! The cannon's still loaded with a special Buggy Ball!"

"Karma… you don't mess with it," Franky muttered, remembering how eager Buggy had been to use it before. Buggy continued to plea, but it was too late… the fuse was gone just as Zoro and Nami ducked and covered their ears as the cannon fired with a boom that echoed around them, literally tearing the building apart as the crew all screamed.

Some of the Straw Hats also screamed, this was worse than before, some of them having to cover their own ears as the explosion engulfed everything, leaving nothing but smoking debris.

"So just by looking at him, you knew that he was actually telling you to point the cannon at them and shoot it back?" Brook called to Zoro once his hearing had returned and the smoke filled the air.

"Hmm? Pretty much," Zoro answered unconcerned.

"But how?" Usopp asked, "I mean… you were with him for a little while but you _knew_?"

"It's just something I would've done if it were me," he answered coolly.

Brook was highly impressed. The two of them had only been crewmates for a short time, but they already knew how to communicate almost perfectly.

Though the smoke didn't bother them, they still couldn't see a thing. Thankfully they were able to find their way out; and aside from some throbbing eardrums, they were all perfectly fine… which couldn't be said for Buggy's crew.

"What happened to you all?" Franky asked, trying to find them.

He was answered with a growl of pain from behind him. Through the rubble, Zoro appeared, and he was carrying Luffy, who was still in the cage. Nami went running with him, staring at the two of them in wonder.

Chopper screamed, "Zoro! What were you doing? You're making the injury worse!"

"Getting us out of there?" he answered obviously.

"You alright, Zoro?" Luffy asked, "How bad are you injured?"

"Just shut up and don't worry about how I'm doing," he snapped back, struggling under the weight of the cage, "I need to concentrate if I'm gonna get us out of this!"

Nami just continued to stare at them as Zoro finally asked Luffy who she was.

"Oh, right," Luffy said evenly, "She's our new navigator."

"I'm not sure about this," Nami countered nervously, "Who are you guys anyway?"

Robin looked to Nami and asked, "Just what was going through your mind here?"

"Just thinking that even pirates can still risk their lives to rescue their friends," she said softly.

"One heck of a way to make an impression," Brook said softly as Zoro hissed at her to move out of the way. Blood squirted out of his wound as he heaved the cage up on his back and lumbered forward. Luffy saw the blood and tried to tell him to put him down, which Zoro ignored as until they were a safe distance away… and even then, he proceeded to drag it beside him.

"You really are crazy," Chopper snapped at him. But Zoro ignored him as memory Zoro kept dragging the cage until he came to rest in front of one of the buildings where his strength finally left him and he fell to the ground, looking ready to sleep.

"Bro, you really don't look good," Franky said nervously as he watched the bloodstain on his shirt grow bigger.

"Nothing that a little rest didn't cure for me," Zoro waved off unconcerned. Even Luffy looked worried as he looked at him; but his attention was then distracted when he noticed that there was a small, white dog with beady black eyes looking back at him. He was standing in front of the building, that they soon realized was a pet food shop and Luffy happily rolled the cage over to him.

"ChouChou," Nami smiled, remembering that little dog.

"I beg your pardon?" Brook asked in confusion.

"The dog's name," she answered fondly, "This is ChouChou… he helped us out when we were leaving this town."

"This little guy?" Usopp asked as Luffy continued to stare at the dog, as if trying to get it to move, even resorting to poking at it… but it was like a statue, it didn't move.

"You sure that's a dog and not a statue?" Franky asked as Luffy started pulling on the dog's face.

"Zoro, this dog looks like it's frozen!" Luffy exclaimed as Zoro was now resting against a pillar on the building.

"I don't give a damn, he can sit there forever for all I care," Zoro huffed, gasping for breath.

"As social as ever I see," Usopp muttered as Luffy suddenly screamed in pain. ChouChou finally couldn't take it anymore and bit Luffy with him trying to pull the mutt off his face.

"Well you can't say that you didn't see that coming," Sanji muttered annoyed.

"Luffy quit goofing around and get serious!" Zoro in the memory yelled angrily before he collapsed again from blood lost. Luffy finally managed to free himself from the dog and rubbed his face in pain.

"Stupid dog," he muttered.

"I don't feel good…" Zoro moaned at the same time, looking like he was about to be sick.

"You both are so strange," Usopp muttered as Chopper shook his head.

"Of course you don't feel good!" he yelled at Zoro. "Didn't you see how much blood you lost?"

"Would you just let it go already?" he barked back in annoyance. Thankfully Nami interrupted the fight by finally tracking them down.

"Hi, navigator," Luffy greeted cheerfully, completely over the previous event as she gave them a tired smile and handed over a large iron key.

"I only did it so we'd be even," Nami explained quickly, but she was still smiling as Luffy looked at it happily. "So now I don't owe you anything so we're square ok?"

"Weren't you the one who got him in trouble in the first place?" Usopp asked her and she blushed innocently.

"Maybe," she said, "But I'm cute so you forgive me right?"

"Of course I do, Nami-swan!" Sanji swooned before giving Usopp a dirty look, "You hear that? You idiots shut up about it!"

"But I'm just telling the truth," Usopp yelled back as Luffy cried out in shock and he looked down in time to see that ChouChou had swallowed the key.

For a moment, no one moved.

"How'd he managed to swallow a key?" Robin asked in mild surprise as Luffy completely lost it and began to choke the dog as the other two stared at him. "You damn dog! Stupid! Stupid! Stupid! Stupid dog! That's not food! Give me that key!"

"LUFFY NO!" Chopper cried as he watched ChouChou choking and change color from lack of air.

"He didn't kill him," Nami said looking around, and she spotted a familiar face coming towards them.

"Hey, stop that! Stop picking on poor ChouChou! Leave him alone!" he yelled back and got everyone's attention.

"Who's that?" Robin asked curiously as an elderly looking man with gray hair that has been arranged in three lumps and wearing brown armor covering up his street clothes.

"And who might are you, old man?" past Zoro asked rudely.

"Old man?" he repeated irritably, "Why I'm the mayor of this town. Who are you and why are you hurting ChouChou?"

They watched as the mayor finally noticed Zoro's injury and took him to his house for some treatment. Chopper sighed in relief, glad that Zoro was finally gonna get some medical attention, but that didn't last long because when the mayor came back out, Luffy asked him how he was doing.

"I told him he really should see a doctor," he said with a shrug, "But he insisted that he didn't need to and just wanted to sleep it off."

"WHAT?" Chopper cried out again, "You need a lot more than sleep for that!"

"Up until then, I was always able to heal from a little sleep," Zoro said in annoyance.

"Could you guys be quiet?" Nami snapped as she tried to listen.

"So this dog's name is ChouChou?" past Nami asked as she petted the dog's head as Luffy continued to look at the dog.

"Why's he just sitting there like that?" he said asking the mayor, "Sure is a lazy dog."

"He's guarding the store," he answered him casually.

"He's guarding it?" Nami repeated in confusion before she looked up and said, "Oh, I see, it's a pet food shop."

"That's right," the mayor answered, "And the man who used to run this shop was a very close friend of mine." As he got a bowl of food for ChouChou, he told them all about how close the dog had been with his owner, and how that same owner died about three months before from an illness. In surprise, Nami asked him if he had been waiting here all this time for his owner to come back. How the mayor agreed that seemed to be the most reasonable answer.

"But I find that very hard to believe," the mayor added as he puffed on a pipe, gazing at the dog as he continued to eat. "ChouChou's a smart dog. He's probably known for awhile that his master's isn't coming back."

Nami looked confused as she asked, "Then why does he stay here at the store?"

"I guess because he's got a connection to it," the mayor answered simply, a hint of sadness in his tone, "It's his… treasure. He's guarding it. His master left him with this shop and that's why he protects it. I've tried to take him back to my place so that he's not out in the elements but he won't take so much as a step away from it."

Franky was sniffing loudly, before he couldn't hold back the flood of tears, Brook soon following close behind as he balled out. "Oh, man… that's so touching!" Franky declared, "He's pulling at my heart! To think that a dog would be here guarding his treasure like this! I can't take it!"

Chopper sniffled, understanding ChouChou's determination. He felt much the same way as he fought to protect the castle from Wapol. That castle was the Doctor's grave, and he wasn't going to let the same man responsible for killing him back inside.

But as Franky and Brook tried to recover from the story, they suddenly heard a loud roar and the ground was shaking with tremors…

"What was that?" Brook cried, his tears drying up as he glanced around for the source of that sound.

"Chopper?" Usopp asked cautiously.

"It's a cat," Chopper said nervously, "A really big cat… and he's hungry!"

"You mean a big cat like the Tiger Lord?" Brook asked him.

"Not even close," Nami sighed, remembering seeing that lion. "That lion was big, but that tiger could've eaten him easy."

"A lion?" Sanji asked in surprise.

"I guess we should've guessed if they have a circus they've have a lion," Robin said, "Hopefully, we won't see it eat someone."

"Robin would you quit doing that?" Usopp demanded as the mayor began to freak out, grabbing Nami's arm and telling her to run. "It's him, the Beast Tamer Mohji!" he screamed at her, almost dragging her away, leaving Luffy still trapped in the cage.

"Wait, you guys just left him there?" Usopp shouted at her.

"What? He handled it it," Nami snapped.

Luffy sighed in a bored way as he spoke with the dog. "Come on puppy something's here," he said to it, "Why don't you just give me that key back?"

"He doesn't seem concerned," Sanji muttered.

"Well, he's used to fighting giant animals, why would he be worried?" Zoro asked. Just then, it came… Nami had been right, while he was big, it was nothing compared to some of the animals from Mt. Colbo. He was a lion with his fur an unusual greenish fur and its main was a light purple color. Riding on its back was a scrawny man who was in a strange animal fur… the hat he had made him look like a teddy bear ears on the top of his head.

Spotting the cage, he ordered the lion to go near him.

"I see that your friends have deserted you," Mohji said as he smirked down at Luffy, once he looked down and saw who it was. "And after you just escaped."

Looking up, Luffy asked, "Who the heck are you?"

"He looks like he has issues," Sanji muttered and they all nodded in silent agreement.

"I'm known as the beast tamer, Mohji, a member of the Buggy pirates," he answered with a ugly smirk.

"A beast tamer?" Chopper asked excitedly.

"Don't get your hopes up, Chopper, he's not that impressive," Nami said rolling her eyes. "Sure that lion listens to him, but as far as I know, he doesn't know anything else."

"Whoa, that's a weird looking animal suit you got on," Luffy said as he looked at Mohji's head.

"Yeah, why wear his hat like that?" Brook asked curiously.

"That was rude!" Mohji yelled angrily as he pointed to his head. "This is my _hair_."

"You mean that's natural?" Sanji asked in horror, his jaw dropping. "What? Why would anyone go around with that?"

"'Kay, that's even weirder," Luffy said, raising an eyebrow.

"Took the words out of my mouth," Sanji muttered in agreement.

"You shouldn't assume that you're safe just because you're in that cage," Mohji said, his angry look being replaced with a dangerously smug one. "You must not know of my terrifying skill! There is no animal in this world that Beast Tamer Mohji can't bend to do his bidding!" He then jumped down from the lion, and tried to get ChouChou to shake… which caused the dog to bit his arm and Mohji screamed in pain, trying to throw the dog off.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Franky said sarcastically, "The world's _greatest_ Beast Tamer."

"If this was a real circus, I'd want my money back," Usopp said looking tired.

"You nameless thief, I have no interest in killing you!" Mohji yelled, as if hoping that Luffy didn't see that last part, "But me where Roronoa Zoro is before I change my mind."

"Even if he did tell that loser, I doubt that he'd let him go," Sanji disagreed.

"No way," Luffy answered bluntly and Zoro smirked.

Mohji lost his temper and finally ordered the lion, whose name was Richie, to attack already. At his command, Richie stomped on the cage, smashing it to pieces and bending the iron bars… but also breaking Luffy—who was clearly happy to finally get out. But almost as soon as he was free, the lion slammed his paw at him, sending him flying and smashing into a house, shattering it to pieces.

"Ouch…" Sanji winced as they went over to see the damage. It took a few minutes for them to track Luffy down in all that damage, but when they finally found him, naturally he was just fine.

"Whew… that was intense. At least now I'm out of that cage," Luffy said to himself as he stood up and brushed himself off as he continued to talk to himself, "Now, first thing I teach those Buggy Pirates a lesson. And then I convince Nami to be the navigator of my crew!"

"Looks like here's where he starts to see you as a crewmate," Robin informed her as Nami smiled kindly at that.

As if he summoned her here by saying her name, Nami and the mayor were there, coming out of their hiding place. Nami stared at Luffy and demanded, "How did you survive that attack?"

"You're alive!?" the mayor cried out in shock.

"Man, why doesn't he just tell them that he's not normal already?" Usopp asked exasperatedly.

"Just got lucky I guess?" Luffy asked in confusion.

"Surviving an attack like that isn't normal, I figured you'd be scattered all over," Nami pointed out, still not quite believing that he was unharmed, and seemed to be expecting him to fall over dead at any moment.

"Not normal?" Luffy asked as if he never realized that he wasn't like other people.

"Why exactly did you decide to come to this town?" the mayor suddenly asked him, wanting some answers, "And how did you get involved with those pirates?"

"He's always getting himself involved in something like this," Sanji added with a sigh. "Comes with the job I guess? You get used to it."

"All I'm doing is searching for that chart of the Grand Line," Luffy answered with a grin. "And then a good navigator to join my pirate crew!" He turned around and ran back towards the pet store with Nami staring after him. "I think that guy in the animal suit said he was looking for Zoro so I gotta go!"

"Like I'd die by that loser," Zoro yawned as they went after him once again, but when they arrived at the pet shop they stopped dead and Franky was now bursting out in tears to see the shop was now in flames.

"That monster!" Usopp yelled out in fury, "He and that bastard lion did this didn't they?"

Nami nodded sadly, listening to ChouChou sitting in front of the burning building, and howling miserably.

"He's crying," Chopper sniffled, tears willing up as he stared at ChouChou's bloody fur and scratches. It was clear that he fought and tried to protect the store from the lion… but even after putting his life on the line, he still couldn't protect it.

Brook sobbed open heartedly with Usopp at that—but no one bothered to tell the ones crying off. They all felt a surge of rage at that after hearing that this place meant to that dog. That shop was all ChouChou had left, it was the one thing he truly cherished, and now that was gone forever.

Zoro was looking at the empty look on Luffy's face as he looked at ChouChou. Suddenly, his Captain's eyes narrowed in anger and he knew right away that Luffy wasn't going to let this go. It didn't matter if he was dealing with a human or an animal… but when it involves something that they are willing to fight to the death for… he takes it seriously.

"He's going after them isn't he?" Brook said at once.

"What do you think?" Sanji asked knowingly as Luffy gazed around, as if trying to smell which way that they went. Finally, he went running off down the road, and the Straw Hats could only follow.

"Oh, I'm looking forward to seeing this," Usopp said firmly, only wishing that he could help Luffy beat Mohji up for hurting ChouChou like this.

It was a good thing that the two didn't get far from the shop when Luffy found them. If anything, seeing the box of pet food in the lion's mouth, served to make them all angry and wanting Luffy to hurry up and beat the crap out of them.

Mohji stared down at him in surprise. "Wait, I thought I killed you. What are you still doing alive?" he demanded.

"Karma's a bitch," Zoro said darkly.

He was a little surprised to see that Luffy answered him with a grim. "I'm afraid you can't get rid of me that easily," he informed him. Mohji grunted in anger as he ordered Richie to attack again. The lion dropped the food and charged ahead like a bull… but they all knew how this would end.

"I'm not going to be beaten by a lion," he proclaimed a she stretched his arms out, twisting them around the lion's face so that he couldn't move. And then, showing no mercy, he leapt into the air landing behind Richie… before being able to lift the beast into the air.

"Gum Gum… HAMMER!" Luffy screamed out, and like that, he left the lion in a crater in the ground… out cold.

"Come on," Sanji muttered, shaking his head, "That cat's pathetic…"

"The whole crew's pathetic," Zoro corrected for him, now wanting to see Luffy deal with Mohji, who was gaping at what just happened, unable to believe what just happened. But there was no doubt that he realized that he was screwed.

"What… what are you!?" Mohji demanded in terror as he stared at Luffy, who had his back to him, kneeling on the ground from the last attack.

He was no longer smiling, and his face was shrouded in darkness… which sent a few chills up some of the crew members up their spines as he said simply, in a completely serious voice that they very rarely ever heard from him, "Well, _I_ ate the Gum Gum Devil Fruit."

Mohji looked like he just choked on something. "So then… you have Devil Fruit powers just like captain Buggy but yours make you rubber!?" he cried out.

"That's normally what it means," Robin said, now frowning at Mohji as well.

Luffy didn't bother to give him an answer as he knelt there, his back still to him. Realizing that he was in deep shit Mohji tried to apologize, claiming that he didn't want any trouble.

"If that was true, then he shouldn't have started the fight," Brook said coldly, knowing that he was going to deserve whatever his Captain dealt out to him.

"Not so tough when his pet's out is he?" Sanji asked, breathing out smoke.

"There's no reason for you apologize to me. Because of you, that dog will never get his treasure back," Luffy said coldly as he finally stood up. There was no mercy in his expression as he looked back at him. "And now… because of that… I'm gonna kick your ass."

"Couldn't have said it better myself," Nami said firmly.

And before Mohji could even move, Luffy stretched his arm out to grab him by the front of his shirt and dragged him over… Mohji's feet dragging along the ground the whole time, before Luffy delivered a single punch and left him on the ground.

"That looked uncomfortable," Zoro said coolly as Luffy glared down at him and the lion with disgust before he went over to the box of pet food that the lion dropped before and started to head back to the store.

"That was something else," Brook said softly, "I don't think I can remember seeing Luffy-san so angry… aside from when he gave Hordy the beatdown back on Fishman Island…"

"If there is one thing that Luffy takes seriously, no matter what it is, it's when someone considers something to be a treasure," Nami said softly. "If that person is willing to fight for it, he will too. And he respects it…"

"That is something amazing," Brook said, feeling his respect for Luffy rise even higher at that. They walked with Luffy, still carrying the food. Nami and the mayor were there now, watching ChouChou sadly as he looked at the burnt remains of wood that had once been his only treasure and his home.

"Pirates are all the same," past Nami said softly, but with anger in her tone as well, "They're all just a bunch of heartless bastards. They destroy everything that people hold dear without giving it a second thought."

"Just what happened to the pirate's world?" Brook asked sadly.

"It's been over fifty years since you sailed the seas, Brook," Robin reminded softly, "Things change. At least here, Luffy was able to punish the ones who did this."

As Luffy came near, Nami looked away, knowing what she was about to say. Her past self looked up at him and said, almost mockingly, "Oh, you're alive, pirate. You know, I thought for sure that lion was gonna tear your head off and end it all." The dark smile that had been on her face disappeared to be replaced with hatred as she shouted out, "And I wished he had because then there'd be one less pirate in the world!"

The crew was staring at the past Nami, unable to believe that she had said something like that. Only Robin glanced at the present Nami, a knowing expression on her face as she walked over to put her hands on Nami's shoulders in a comforting way.

"Nami?" Usopp asked as she refused to look at any of them.

"That's just… what I always thought of when I heard the world pirate," she answered so quietly, that they almost missed it.

But her past self was full of anger as she ran to him, screaming out, "Maybe I should kill you right now before you can gather a crew and destroy everything else!"

In a blind anger she ran at him, but the mayor stopped her, trying to hold her back. "Come now!" he said, "There's no need for violence."

But Nami was past listening as she fought to break away.

"Don't worry, Nami-swan," Sanji said to her comfortingly, "You don't have to worry about anything anymore…"

"I know," Nami said, finally looking back up. "But still… that means a lot to hear that… thanks Sanji."

Out of respect, Sanji didn't go into any heartfelt words of love. But he did smile brighter at that.

"Would you have really killed him?" Franky asked, though he already had a feeling he knew the answer.

"I was angry," she confessed. "Seeing how ChouChou lost everything here reminded me of myself. Thinking back… even if I _could_ kill him, I don't think I could. Even if it meant that I was ridding the world of another pirate."

Luffy walked passed her, heading straight for ChouChou, muttering, "As if you could ever kill me."

"Well, maybe I'll try it and see!" Nami screamed at him.

"I said stop it!" the mayor yelled, "What's with you people?"

But then Luffy gently put the box of pet food in front of ChouChou… at that, Nami and the mayor froze as they watched Luffy walk around and sit beside the dog.

"Sorry, but that's all I could save for you," Luffy said to him as he looked back to the remains of the shop. "That bastard lion ate all the rest of it."

ChouChou didn't move a muscle, much like before when they first saw the dog, but he was staring at the box of food.

"I couldn't believe what he did," Nami confessed softly to them all, "He went and fought that lion just to get the dog's food back… to think that he went out of his way to do something just for a little dog… that's when I really knew that he wasn't like any other pirate."

She smiled to herself as she watched Luffy say to ChouChou how he could tell that he gave it his all to protect the store.

"Oh, man," Franky sniffled. "I love that dog…"

ChouChou still didn't react at all, as if he didn't hear what Luffy just said. Instead, he merely picked the box up and started to walk away from the shop, no longer having a reason to stay here. But then he turned his head and barked at him happily.

Now it was Chopper who sniffled a little at that. "He said, '_I owe you. And good luck!'_"

Luffy smiled at ChouChou and, like he understood what he just said as well, called back, "Thanks! Good luck to you too, doggy."

ChouChou barked a couple more time before picking up his food again and they all watched in silence as he left, probably heading to where the other citizens fled when the pirates came.

"What'd he say there?" Usopp asked Chopper, who was rubbing his red eyes.

"That time he said, _'I'll be alright! Hope to see you again!'_" he answered and Franky burst out crying.

"Such a moving scene," Brook declared, his boney hands over his ribcage again, "My heart feels as if it's being torn up! Not that I have a heart to begin with! Yohohoho!"

No one said anything as they watched on… wondering just what could happen next. Luffy kept staring even long after ChouChou was gone, and the mayor finally let go of Nami. She didn't look remotely angry anymore as she stared at Luffy, as if she had never seen anyone like him before. And then, she slowly headed to him until she was a few feet away.

She stood there silent for a moment, trying to find the words. "Sorry about earlier…" she said, and this time, they could hear the regret in her voice. "For thinking… you were like them."

If Luffy was angry with her, he didn't show it. He merely looked up with a smile and said calmly, "That's ok, you've been under a lot of stress lately."

"I'm surprised that he could see that," Nami told them all as she watched the smile appear on her own past self's face. It was here that Nami fully started to respect Luffy… that she could no longer think of him as something like Buggy or Arlong. It was almost startling the difference on her face as she looked… it was here that she truly believed that this was the moment that she began to see Luffy as a friend… something that she never truly had since before she had been forced to join.

Luffy finally got up and dusted off his clothes, telling her that he didn't need to apologize. But as they were talking, they had forgotten all about the mayor, so they were all surprised when they heard him speak.

"I'm pathetic!" he declared, and he was shaking all over, though they weren't sure if it was from anger or fear here. "ChouChou and this young one have fought so hard and yet, _I… the mayor_, have done nothing but sit back and watch our town be obliterated by Buggy and his despicable crew!"

Luffy and Nami ran to him, trying to calm him down, but nothing they said could work. Instead, the mayor told them all about how they built this town forty years ago. How it was nothing but a barren stretch of land, and how they all came together to build it. Here… he proclaimed the town to be his and the other inhabitants treasure.

"That's something special," Usopp said, understanding the desire to protect your home even when the odds were against you. But almost on cue, Buggy had fired another one of his Buggy Balls, destroying another row of houses, once of which was the mayor's…

"AHHHH" Chopper panicked, "YOU WERE STILL IN THERE, ZORO!"

"Relax," Zoro said evenly, waving his hand away, "I didn't even feel it…"

But Luffy's eyes widened in horror as he just realized the same thing, "AHHH! Zoro was sleeping in there!"

"I'm sure he's dead now," the mayor said regretfully.

"Zoro?! You in there?" Luffy cried panicky, "Are you still alive?"

Zoro was oddly touched by Luffy's concern. He wasn't used to having others worry about his safety… but it did make him feel as if there was something warming up inside him at the gesture.

But then, as they watched through the smoke and rubble they saw Zoro sitting up, rubbing his head almost sleepily as he muttered darkly, "That's one hell a way to wake a guy up."

"How come you weren't dead?!" Usopp screamed at him as Luffy beamed happily, glad to see that Zoro was alright. "You didn't even have a scratch!"

"The building took most of the blast," he shrugged as his past self complained about wanting a few more Z's before having to get up.

"Shame," Sanji said sorrowfully.

"Did you say something, crap cook?" Zoro demanded angrily.

"How did you survive that blast?" memory Nami, said more to herself than to Zoro.

"At that point, I was beginning to think that nothing could surprise me," Nami confessed before sighing, "Boy was I in for a shock."

"Alright! You're alive!" Luffy cheered.

But apparently this was just one explosion to many for the mayor as he hissed to himself, "I refuse to let him get away with this! I won't stand for it. I can't let that scumbag destroy all that my people worked for these last forty years. I am the mayor of this town! I will protect it and its inhabitants! This I swear to my dying breath!" This last part he screamed out, looking ready to march to Buggy, which was probably what he was gonna do if Nami didn't try to hold him back. She told him that he didn't stand a chance, and he knew it, they could see in his face that he already knew it, but he didn't care, he was going to go and fight anyway.

"A brave man," Sanji said, blowing out smoke rings, "He knew he didn't stand a chance, but was still willing to fight anyway."

"Seeing Luffy and ChouChou gave him courage," Zoro explained. He just didn't get what was about that rubber idiot that he could do this without even trying. It was just like there was some strange charm about him that seemed cause people to gather around him…?

"But he's going to get himself killed!" Usopp yelled breaking his thoughts, the mayor breaking away and running down the street to where the last Buggy Ball came from. "Even if it's Buggy, he doesn't stand a chance!"

"He knew that, but he accepted it," Robin said, understanding better than anyone. She saw the tears in the mayor's eyes… "He was ready to die if he had to. But he couldn't stand back and not do anything. He wanted to at least die protecting the town he loved."

"Looks like the party's getting more exciting," Zoro's voice interrupted their thoughts as he came out of the wreckage to join Luffy and Nami and watch the mayor run.

"Sure does," Luffy laughed.

"This is no time for laughter!" Nami said crossly, clearly upset, but Luffy was still smiling at her.

"Don't worry, I started to grow fond of that old man," Luffy reassured her. "There's no way I'd let him die!"

"Well, in that case," Zoro said nonchalantly as he walked between them and started going after the mayor.

"You're gonna go too!?" Nami called, before reminding him that he was hurt.

Naturally, Zoro tied his bandanna on his head, smirking evilly the whole time. "Yeah, so what? The injury to my reputation is a lot worse than the injury to my gut."

Chopper sighed in irritation. "What were you thinking?" he demanded, which was causing Zoro to become seriously annoyed with all the yelling.

"Would you quit nagging me?" he said bored.

"I will when you stop getting yourself into these situations!" Chopper yelled at him, as if he was stupid.

"Well if we want to get to the Grand Line," Luffy said confidently, looking after the mayor's retreating back, "we better go steal that chart back!" He then turned towards Nami, "You gonna join our crew or what?" he asked holding up his hand to her, "Come on."

Nami stared at the hand for a moment in surprise.

"I still couldn't believe that he wanted me in his crew after all that," Nami told them all, but she was truly glad that he did. She watched as she looked back at Luffy. "I'll never sink so low as to become a pirate," she finally said, letting him know that she wasn't going to change her mind any time soon. But then, she slapped his hand with a smile. "But I suppose we could team up," she said reasonably. "In order to achieve our common goals."

Once they finished making up their minds, they went running after the mayor, and it wasn't a moment too soon. By the time they tracked him down, Buggy already had him with his disembodied hand, and was slowly strangling him—which Luffy had forced him to let go.

"How dare you?" Buggy demanded furiously, "You can't just waltz up and treat me like this! I'm Captain Buggy and I won't stand for it!"

"I can't wait to see what he intends to do about it," Franky grinned.

"Listen to me," past Nami said to the boys, "All I want is the chart and the treasure and then I'm outta here you got it?"

"Yeah," Zoro said to her unconcerned. "I got it."

The mayor was telling them off until Luffy knocked him out.

"LUFFY!" Chopper yelled at him, with Nami also yelling the same thing, "What the hell do you think you're doing? Why'd you knock out the mayor?

"Because he was in the way," Robin answered as Luffy smiled back at them.

"That's not a bad idea," past Zoro said, "If the old man had continued to fight, he would've died." They all look down at the unconscious mayor, "It's for the best."

But as Nami began to tell Luffy off, he ignored her as he looked up at Buggy and shouted out, "HEY BIG NOSE!"

"Oh, he did it now," Franky laughed. He was right. Buggy looked furious and he bellowed at his men to shoot another Buggy Ball at them. Nami and Zoro tried to tell him to run, but he stayed where he was until he inflated and sent the ball back. The look on everyone's faces alone was worth seeing it…

"You could've warned me," Zoro muttered as Nami gaped at him like a fish out of water.

"That wasn't something you see every day," Nami said, amused by how stunned she was as the building blew up and the Buggy pirates were all screaming as they were flung apart, "I thought for sure that he was gonna be blown to pieces, but instead he becomes a balloon."

"Alright!" Luffy called proudly. "I got 'em!"

"What the hell kind of monster are you?!" Nami screamed at him, glaring up from her place on the ground.

"I think you freaked her out," Zoro told him coolly as Luffy looked back at her. That was when they watched Luffy explain that he was Rubberman and how Buggy survived by using his own men as a shield…

"That is despicable!" Brook screamed at the idea. "And you call yourself a captain?!"

Things only got weirder from there. Buggy ordered, of all people, one of his men riding a unicycle to fight. His name was Cabaji and he was a tall, slender man with his hair covering half of his face, a large blue and white checkered scarf that covers the lower portion of his face and flowed down his front. While riding the unicycle, he went speeding over to try and attack Luffy, but Zoro stepped in and stopped the blade.

"Really?" Brook asked more sweatdropped than ever.

"He can't be serious," Usopp agreed exasperatedly. But despite his injury, Zoro was more than willing to fight him. Even with Chopper yelling in his ear about how he was going to make that injury even worse, he knew that he would do it all over again. He lives for the thrill of combat.

The fight was dirty to say the least. Cabaji kept going for Zoro's injury… but he kept getting back up to fight.

"Why doesn't Luffy help?" Chopper asked, staring at Luffy. Past Nami obviously thought the same thing and demanded the same thing, who didn't say anything… he didn't even look at her as he watched.

"It's what he does," Sanji said, recalling the fight Zoro and Mihawk. "Even if they're losing… he doesn't get involved in another's fight."

"Even if someone could get killed!?" Chopper demanded angrily.

"I wanted it this way," Zoro snapped, shutting Chopper up as he looked up at him. "Luffy understood that. If he had interfered, I wouldn't have forgiven him."

"Men and their pride," Nami sighed, shaking her head. She'll never understand them.

"You annoying little bastard," past Zoro was growling threateningly, which was never a good thing, "You having fun poking at my wound?" his eyes looked dangerous, as he cried out, "Go ahead!"

Cabaji rode at him at full speed, but this time Zoro didn't move as he let the acrobat stab him in the same place that Buggy did, ripping the wound open. Chopper screamed in horror as people like Usopp and Brook cringed in pain.

"Why didn't you dodge it?" Chopper demanded loudly, looking ready to fight Zoro for doing something so dumb.

"To prove a point," Zoro said simply. "If I lost because of that wound, my reputation would never have recovered."

"And that was worth almost getting killed?" Chopper screamed at him. "You could've bled to death!"

"I didn't so what's the problem here?" he asked in a bored tone that only made Chopper more frustrated than ever. At least Luffy had the sense to keep the bandages on for longer than a few hours… but this guy is always practically trying to kill himself!

Zoro, on the other hand, kept his eyes on the fight. His memory self was still facing Cabaji, refusing to back down. He spoke about how he refused to bring himself to lose to anyone who called himself a swordsman.

"Like you would've lost to a loser like him," Franky said confidently. "You wouldn't have a very bright future ahead if you lost to someone who rides a unicycle."

But Nami wasn't paying much attention as she suddenly remembered what happened next, and glanced back in time to see her past self sneak away to steal the Buggy's treasure. But everyone kept their eyes on the fight as it continued on. There were a few words of outrage when Buggy tried to interfere, but thankfully Luffy stepped in to stop it… in the end, Zoro gave it one last push of energy and took down Cabaji with one final slash.

"YEAH!" Chopper screamed as Usopp and Franky cheered. "GO ZORO!"

"I can't believe the Buggy Pirates were defeated by petty thieves," Cabaji croaked out before his eyes rolled into the back of his head.

"It didn't really seem that tough," Robin said lightly, tilting her head casually, "They really weren't that strong…?"

"We aren't petty thieves," Zoro in the memory growled before he collapsed, his words sounding a little flat as he laid there. "We're pirates!"

Zoro smirked, and Robin understood. "I believe that's the first time you called yourself a pirate."

"Took some time getting used to," Zoro confessed as his past self croaked out, "Luffy…? I'm going to sleep."

Luffy smiled at him, letting him know that he would take care of everything else here. Leaving Zoro on the ground to sleep everything off, he turned to face Buggy. They exchanged words, with Luffy once again proclaiming that he would become the King of the Pirates. As soon as he heard that Buggy snorted angrily, then saying that _he_ would be the one to do it.

"If Buggy ever became king, then I would lose all hope for the world," Sanji said shaking his head.

"Can't argue with that," Nami said, each crew member sweatdropped as they watched the scene. But what really got them was when he mentioned Shanks.

"I can't believe that these two were once crewmates," Franky said, scratching his head as he thought about the captain that saved Luffy when he was a child, and this clown. He just couldn't see it…

But that was when the fight began, and it was interesting at first. Luffy kept throwing attack after attack, but with Buggy able to break apart, it was almost impossible for Luffy to get a good hit in. It took him a few minutes to land a decent hit in and it only happened because Buggy had the nerve to badly damage Luffy's hat. First it was just a tiny nick on the rim… but what he did next made them all angry. He used three daggers to destroy the hat; and when Luffy heard Buggy insult Shanks was enough to drive him over the edge. Luffy was suddenly thrown into a rage that they'd never seen before.

"How dare he?" Chopper cried furiously, wanting to beat up Buggy himself. "Shanks is a amazing man!"

"Red-Hair is truly a man among men," Brook added.

"Shanks is a much better man than you'll ever be! You don't have the right to call him comrade!" Luffy bellowed charging ahead, "And don't you ever badmouth him again!"

In his rage, he finally dealt a painful blow in Buggy's stomach.

"Oh, that had to hurt," Usopp winced, but not at all sympathetic.

"If he wasn't so interesting in bragging and showing off, he could've avoided that," Robin said, having watched how Buggy's head went flying off, but still able to feel the blow.

"What happened between them?" Chopper asked, not getting how anyone could hate Shanks. Luffy wanted to know that to as he grabbed Buggy's face, pulling it apart, demanding that he tell him about Shanks.

Pushing Luffy away, he finally told them the story about how, while they were still pirates-in-training, he grew to hate Shanks. During a raid on an enemy ship, Buggy found a treasure map marking the location of a valuable underwater treasure; during the same raid, the crew retrieved a Devil Fruit: the Chop Chop Fruit. When he heard of how much that a single Devil Fruit could go for, Buggy switched the real fruit with a fake, and then ate the fake in front of the crew so he could sell the fruit.

The night that he was gonna leave and start his plans, Buggy was surprised by Shanks; he hid the fruit in his mouth, and before he could remove it, Shanks surprised him again and he swallowed it - forever losing the ability to swim, and thus also losing his chance to get the treasure underwater after he dropped the map into the ocean.

"It doesn't sound like it was Shanks's fault to me," Chopper said in confusion.

"It wasn't," Zoro said in disgust. "Buggy just didn't want to admit that he was an idiot and blames Shanks for his own stupidity."

"But come on… he tries to jump into the sea to get a map after he ate a Devil Fruit?" Sanji asked, "That's why I'll never eat one. As far as I'm concerned, it's not worth losing the ability to swim."

"Wow… so are you telling me that Shanks saved your life?" Luffy asked when he realized that Shanks jumped in after him.

"NO!" Buggy screamed at him. "That's not the point I'm trying to get across!"

"It sounds like he saved him to me," Brook said.

Buggy went on about how he blamed Shanks for everything, and how he decided that he would simply go after all the treasure on land if he couldn't swim. But he was now no longer interested in Luffy when he spotted Nami trying to make off with a large sack of treasure that she obviously stole from him. Buggy launched his top half at her with knives ready. Sanji screamed out a warning, but Nami had already noticed and began running.

"Don't worry," present Nami smirked as she watched Luffy find the lower half of Buggy's body. As soon as they saw it, they knew right away what Luffy was gonna do… and sure enough… Luffy had given a hard kick right in his own family jewels…

"Oh…" Franky moaned out. He didn't like Buggy, but still… no man should ever have the pain of losing his balls like that.

"Are they cracking?" Chopper winced, "I think I heard something break…"

Even Zoro was shaking his head. Luffy wasn't afraid to fight dirty if he had to… and that was more than effective.

"At least it shut him up," Robin offered in amusement.

"You would think that," Franky muttered to her darkly, having suffered from her brutality first-hand.

With Buggy on the ground in pure agony, Luffy warned Nami to drop the treasure and run, which she refused. When she claimed the treasure was now hers, Buggy grew mad but Nami refused to listen to anything he had to say. Furious, Buggy got back up and went after her again, this time when his body had flung apart into dozens of pieces.

"That is too weird," Brook said, watching the pieces of flesh float in the air. But even with his body in so many pieces, Luffy had spotted Buggy's feet walking along as he continued after Nami.

"Oh… this is gonna be good," Franky smirked as he watched Luffy pick up a foot and began to do all sorts of things. From tickling to slamming his toes onto the ground… until Buggy finally couldn't ignore it anymore and screamed at him to stop.

With him distracted, Nami swung the bag of treasure around in an attempt to attack Buggy, but he ended up grabbing the treasure bag. Neither one of the pair was letting go so it became a sort of game of tug-of-war. Buggy attempted to strike Nami with the knives, however Luffy once again reminded him who he was supposed to be fighting as he came out of nowhere, and took him out with a kick… knocking him into the bag of treasure, ripping the bag, scattering its contents everywhere.

"This is certainly one interesting fight," Brook laughed as Nami stared at the damage, and quietly thanked Luffy for helping her.

"He knows how to take punishment though doesn't he?" Franky laughed as he looked at Buggy's agony-filled face. "He's having the worst day!"

"He looks like a broken toy," Chopper said looking at the parts lying everywhere.

But all good things had to come to an end. This time, when Buggy woke up and tried to reform himself; however Nami has already tied up several body parts and Buggy was left with just bits of his body. With Buggy clearly defeated he was launched into the air by Luffy sent him flying far away with his Gum Gum Bazooka… ending the battle once and for all.

"There we go," Sanji said approvingly, glad that shitty bastard finally got his due for trying to hurt Nami. He only wished that Luffy hurt him more…

"Wow, that was one heck of a day," Franky laughed, having actually enjoyed the battle. "That was something else, sis."

Nami smiled a little. "Thinking back, I probably wouldn't be here if I didn't decide to steal from Buggy. I'm glad that it worked out this way."

"Still, if he wasn't so stupid and stopped bragging, he would've been a lot more dangerous," Robin said with a sigh. "Overconfidence often leads to your downfall."

"And I don't think that I've ever seen anyone with such a big ego," Chopper said.

"Unless you count Usopp," Zoro offered.

"Yeah, unless you count… HEY!" he yelled angrily.

"Oh, Luffy-san," Brook said sadly, getting their attention, and they looked up to see their captain slowly walk over to where his hat lay on the ground, still badly torn up.

"I'm gonna kill Buggy for that," Franky threatened, punching his giant fists together.

Luffy stared sadly at his hat as Nami walked over to him and quietly offered to fix it for him.

"Oh! So _you_ fixed it," Brook asked her happily.

"Well, I know a little bit of sewing," she smiled, "I may not have completely been able to fix the hat up like it was before, but I did a pretty good job of it if I do say so myself."

They watched as Nami then gave him the chart of the Grand Line.

"You gave it to him willingly?" Usopp asked her stunned.

"I know my dues," she said, frowning at him. "And he did deserve it… though now I know that he can't read a map to save his life."

She glanced up to see Luffy's ecstatic look as he took the chart happily. "That was just my way of saying thanks for saving me," Nami said softly as Luffy then asked her again if she wanted to join.

"I told you before, that no matter what, I'll never join a pirate crew!" she said to him firmly, but a small smile appeared on her face. "But… alright. Hanging around with you seems profitable enough. But just remember this. I'm only joining you… because it's in my interests."

"I see," Robin said to her, "So it was more like an alliance instead of an actual membership."

Nami nodded softly. Truth was, she was trapped in another pirate crew at the time anyway, no matter how much she despised it. She never planned on staying with them long anyway… but the longer she sailed with them, the more they began to grow on her. So that by the time she had to return to her home village, it had been almost painful… it had not been an easy thing to do for her to leave.

Once that was all settled with, Luffy went over to wake Zoro up, who looked sickly from his injury.

"You needed a doctor!" Chopper yelled at him, not liking all the blood he lost.

"Again, I didn't die did I?" he said irritably, "I survived without so much as a scar so stop bugging me!"

However, things sorta happened quickly after that… just as they were going to go wake up the mayor, the rest of the citizens came back, demanding to know what happened.

"Sure…" Usopp groaned, smacking his forehead at that, "They come after the dangers over!"

"It was for the best, if they had been here, they'd probably get hurt," Brook answered. But soon, things turned sour… thanks to Luffy, the people were now convinced that _they_ were the ones behind all the destruction and the trio were forced to make a run for it. Luffy hoisted Zoro up, and dragged him along as Nami picked up the two sacks of loot on her shoulders.

"Ungrateful aren't they?" Sanji yelled as they were forced to make a run for it, "They take care of the pirates before they're run out of town!"

But Luffy had a different view of it all.

"This is a good town," Luffy suddenly called, getting their attention.

"How could he think that when they're chasing them?" Chopper demanded, but Luffy saw Nami's questioning look and explained to her, "Everyone's so mad because of the old mayor guy. Something tells me that they aren't gonna listen to our side of the story anyway."

"So true," Zoro laughed.

"Yeah, when I think about it now, even if we did explain it, they wouldn't have let us go," Nami smiled happily with them.

"Funny how Luffy can see the bigger picture," Usopp said softly.

"I think he's more perspective than we give him credit for," Robin smiled widely as well as the trio made a sharp turn and ran down an alleyway, but they did get a surprise. There was ChouChou waiting for them…

"ChouChou?" Chopper called in surprise as the three leapt over the dog, who was now barking furiously at the townspeople, holding them back and giving the three time to escape.

"Oh, so that's what you meant when you said that ChouChou helped you escape!" Brook said, admiring the little dog's spirit.

"Yep," Nami smiled, as they continued to chase after the three. "We probably wouldn't have made it back to the docks in time if he hadn't stopped them."

"What's he saying, Chopper?" Robin asked as ChouChou's barking voice started to fade

"He was saying _'anyone who wants to go after them has to go through me first'_!" Chopper smiled just as Luffy cried out a thank you to the dog. They all ran as fast as they could to the docks, now eager to see what happened next—and aside from meeting up with a few members of Buggy's crew who wanted to kill Nami for stealing their ship—it was uneventful.

"Why did they run away screaming when they saw you, Zoro?" Usopp asked him, watching the three run in terror as soon as they got a good look at Zoro's face.

"Moss head's face scared them," Sanji smirked as Zoro gave him a filthy look.

"After Luffy was carried off by that dumb bird, I tried to follow them," he answered through gritted teeth, trying to fight the urge to kill the cook. "But these three were hitchhikers and I made them row me out here."

"Oh, that explains it," Sanji said as they followed Luffy and the others into the two boats and set off, with Luffy leaving behind half of the treasure on the docks. "I wondered how you could've found your way. Someone helped you…"

"At least I was there you idiot!" Zoro snapped at him as they followed them on the water. But as soon as they were leaving the shore, Usopp called for them to look back. They did and they were surprised to see that the mayor was running up, but without his armor this time. "HEY WAIT! YOUNG ONES!" he bellowed out at them.

"It's the old mayor guy," Luffy said as they looked back, and they were all sure that he was gonna curse them all out.

But instead, with tears in his eyes, the mayor screamed out, "THANKS! THANK YOU!"

The Straw Hats all grinned along with the three in the boats as they sailed off.

"Don't worry about it!" Luffy called back, "Take it easy!"

But as soon as Nami realized that half of the treasure was left there, she tried to drown Luffy while Zoro laughed his ass off watching them.

Smiling, he leaned comfortably back in the little boat, gazing up at the sky… "Well, for better or for worse," he muttered to himself, "looks like we finally have a navigator in our crew."

But as soon as those words had been said, and the Straw Hats took another step forward, the bright sunny sky and ocean disappeared around them. Suddenly the whole crew was back in the forest on that mysterious island… in the middle of the night… with no idea to how it happened.

**(What do you think? A lot longer than usual, but I added in all the parts that I liked from the Orange Town Arc. But I think that I might've made it too long and put too much in, but hey, I thought I'd give it a try. Please tell me what you think and if you liked it.)**


	15. Enter the King of Snipers: Usopp

**Chapter 15: Enter the King of Snipers: Usopp**

"Ok, can someone tell me how we got back out here?" Franky asked, now annoyed at how they were suddenly back in the creepy forest they left. "And where did the sun go?"

"Do you think we have any more ideas to what's going on than you do?" Nami snapped at him as Robin used her powers to see around the island and get their bearings straight.

"We're in a different part of the forest," she told them all. "Not that far from the ruins. Apparently, we've been running around here while watching everything."

"But…?" Usopp began before he went stumbling around, staring at the sinister-looking trees and up at the scattered stars. "We were in Orange Town in the middle of the day a few seconds ago!"

"The memories are mixed with the island," Robin answered him, "If we continue to search for the creature that's loose out here, then we will be following it through these memories as well." She looked to Zoro and asked, "Didn't you say that the monster hasn't taken on a form yet?"

Zoro nodded, "That's just what I heard. Apparently it doesn't have a mind of its own yet. But it's now lurking somewhere, trying to find a new shape. At least that's what I think is happening."

"So… we just keep going through memories until we find it?" Nami asked cautiously, "And… when we do find it… what next?"

"Lure it back to the ruins and kill it I guess," Sanji muttered, looking around and deciding to head in one random direction. But the moment he went too far from the group, the dark island faded again so that they were out on the sea and the bright sun was overhead.

"Thank goodness, I like being in the sun so much better than the dark, Yohohoho," Brook said happily, being in that forest reminded him too much of Thriller Bark for his liking. He felt much better looking at the blue sky and warm sunshine, even if it was all an illusion.

And it didn't take long for them to spot the two boats, sailing side by side, and coming towards them. "I remember," Nami said smiling as she watched them come closer. She had sailed around with these two for only a few weeks and the time she spent with them had already been more fun than the last eight years of being a thief.

When they came closer they could hear some of the things that they were saying as well as get a good look at them. Luffy was, once again, sitting up on the bow of the ship and enjoying an apple as Zoro was dozing behind him. Nami was rolling her eyes at something Luffy had said and was telling them off for something or other again.

"There's absolutely no way we're gonna make it to the Grand Line in this condition!" Nami said to them in a deeply annoyed voice.

The other two looked back at her, wondering what she was going on about this time. The apple that Luffy had been eating had been reduced to nothing but a core, and he looked at it as he said, "You're right, we're gonna need a whole lot more meat."

"I should've known he'd say that," Sanji sighed.

Luffy finished swallowing the apple core and finished, "Eating fruit everyday is for the birds."

"You can't survive on apples alone," Brook said happily.

"I happen to like fruit," Nami told him darkly.

"We'll also need some booze too," memory Zoro added before Nami lost her temper and threw one of the apples at him.

"Shut up you bone-heads!" she yelled at him as Luffy stretched out to grab the apple she threw and went to eating that one. "That's not what I mean!" she went on, before explaining, "The Grand Line's a dangerous place! We'll need more than beer and meat to survive there! Not to mention that place is crawling with pirates who are also in search of the One Piece! And they all have ships that are way better than this!"

"Yes, two little boats wouldn't have stood a chance in such rough waters for long," Robin agreed.

"And we don't have a crew," Luffy admitted with a mouthful of apple.

"We don't have a crew, we don't have any equipment, or even a real ship for that matter!" Nami yelled, "There is _no_ way we'll ever make it like this!"

"Glad that one of us had a brain here," Nami sighed as she watched herself.

"Yep, we'll need a cook and maybe a musician to keep us entertained!" Luffy said happily. Sanji smirked, wondering if he would get to see his big entrance as well. Brook looked ready to sing at the mention of the musician.

"A musician?" Zoro questioned before he laughed.

"What's so funny, Zoro-san?" Brook asked at once, wondering just why he was laughing at the idea of having a musician around.

"It just seemed so random," Zoro answered with a shrug.

"So stupid," memory Nami muttered to herself.

"I agree with you there," Nami nodded, agreeing with her past. But she was enjoying herself as she watched her past self went back to looking at some maps. Once she realized where they were, she said, "A little to the south of here is a small island with some settlements on it. And it looks like we might be able to get a ship and some of the supplies we need there."

"Yeah," Nami nodded in agreement, already realizing where they were heading to next. And they did… they got a ship, supplies… she gave Usopp a sideways glance and smiled. And another crewmate.

"Fresh meat at last!" Luffy cheered happily.

"And lots of booze there as well," Zoro said with a wide smile.

"Is that all you think about?!" memory Nami yelled at them in annoyance. "What am I gonna do with you two?"

"I still wonder," Nami sighed sympathetically.

Robin chuckled to herself, "You three are fighting like brothers and a sister."

"You think?" Nami asked as she watched them, hands on her hips.

"Sure," Robin answered, "I noticed it awhile ago. Our whole crew is close with each other, but you three seem to be a little closer than even that."

"So touching," Franky sniffed, a giant hand over his heart.

"I never really thought about it," Nami laughed. "We did spend a lot of time together before we met up with Usopp and Sanji."

"And our little family of misfits have grown into an even bigger family of misfits," Zoro smirked.

"Too true," Usopp agreed. Their ranks have members so vastly different from one another that it almost seems random if you thought it through. They have a doctor who is a shape-shifting reindeer monster, a cyborg who wears nothing but shirts and speedos for a shipwright, and an undead perverted skeleton for a musician. Not to mention the rest of the crew for that matter…?

Yeah, he didn't think that there was another crew out there whose members were this strange.

"Wow, having a navigator's great," Luffy said once he had finished eating and looked over at past Nami.

"It is isn't it?" Sanji swooned as he looked at Nami fondly.

"What island is it anyway?" past Zoro asked her.

Memory Nami looked down at the map and said, "I think we'll be at the north side of a place called Gecko Island."

Usopp's eyes widened. "You mean…?"

Nami and Zoro smiled at him, knowing that this was going to make him happy to see his old village again.

"Something wrong, Usopp?" Chopper asked, noticing the happy tears in Usopp's eyes. "You know it?"

"Know it?" he repeated, smiling widely. "I was born on Gecko Island! So this is where we meet up! We're gonna see Syrup Village again!"

"Sounds like a sweet place," Chopper said, hungry all of a sudden.

"I am looking forward to seeing your home, Usopp-san," Brook muttered as they walked alongside the boats. "What's it like?"

"Well… boring actually," Usopp laughed. "I remember how I used to run through the village and try to lighten things up. It was great. OH! WE'LL GET TO SEE KAYA AND MY OLD CREW!"

"Your old crew?" Sanji repeated in confusion.

"You mean you were in a pirate crew before you joined us, Usopp?" Chopper asked, "That's amazing!"

"And who's Kaya?" Robin asked curiously.

But before Usopp could answer them, Zoro gave him a hard poke in the back of the head. "Relax, everyone will get their answers if we watch. But keep your eyes out for the monster."

"But we don't even know what this thing'll look like," Franky complained loudly.

"Well, I'm sure we'll know it when we see it," he snapped, "As much fun as it is walking down memory lane, we still have to find Luffy remember?"

They all blinked before looking down a little ashamed. The thought of seeing these old memories had just erased from their minds about helping Luffy. Zoro was right, they had to pay more attention. Ace was counting on them. And if they wanted their Captain back, they'd have to start searching for the monster…

They didn't say much else as they continued walking alongside the boats, listening to the three talk or argue… much like how a girl would fight with her brothers for being lazy. Present-day Nami couldn't help but smiled widely at that. But soon, they spotted an island with high cliffs directly in front of them.

Luffy spotted them first and cried out excitedly, "LAND HO!"

At his cry, Usopp turned and smiled so widely that his face hurt. He couldn't believe it! After over two years at sea, he was finally going to see home again! He ran on ahead, his thoughts on Kaya and the Usopp Pirates, and he felt like his heart would burst with joy at the thought of seeing them again. He was the first one to reach the shore and stared around happily. The high cliffs and rocky shoreline that led up a steep hill that would surly lead them to the village.

He couldn't stop beaming, and he had to fight every urge to go to the village himself. But he reminded himself that he had a job to do… this wasn't even his real home… just some kind of figment of his imagination. But he just couldn't help the feelings of seeing it all. He shook his head hard. Someday he'd return home to see his friends again, but for now he had to pay attention! He was doing this for Luffy after all!

"Usopp!" Chopper's voice sounded behind him and the little reindeer came running up, gasping for breath. "Don't do that!"

"Yeah, man," Franky said, frowning heavily, "We get that you're happy and everything, but let's try not to get separated in this place."

Usopp didn't look at them however until he heard the two boats come ashore and their passengers get out to look around and stretch. "I know," he said slowly, wiping away the stray tear. "It's just… I suddenly felt homesick."

Robin gently put a hand on his shoulder and he felt a little better. He smiled back at them all before he heard memory Zoro groan out, "It feels good to be on dry land again."

"So there's a village around here somewhere right?" Luffy asked Nami, as she was pouring over the map.

She nodded at the question and answered, "Yeah, it looks like a small one though."

"Tiny," Usopp grinned. "It's so out of the way that pirates don't bother coming here."

"It sounds very peaceful, Usopp-san," Brook said.

"Yeah," he confessed with his arms behind his head. "But still… I'll take life on the high seas any day. While it'd be great to see home again someday, I don't think I could ever really be happy there like out here."

"Well said," Sanji said, knowing the feeling.

Luffy suddenly started drooling as he ran to look at the map himself, "Ooooo! Then that means meat! There's meat! There has to be a place to eat meat in this village?"

"Just forget about meat for a moment would ya?" Nami snapped, pushing him away irritably. Zoro just yawned and looked around as the two argued… but suddenly they heard leaves up on the cliff rustle and memory Zoro went to his swords.

"Careful," he told the other two, "We're being watched."

Luffy started to look around eagerly, as if someone would pop up at any second. "By who?" he asked excitedly, "Where are they? They got meat?"

"Someone's up there," Sanji said suddenly, looking to the cliff to see several bullets go flying at Luffy. Zoro obviously saw them too because he called a warning to Luffy. But instead of hitting him, they were aimed at his feet and Luffy was forced to do a stupid kind of dance to avoid them, with Nami running and hiding behind one of the boats.

"What's going on?" Brook called wildly, trying to detect where the shots were fired from.

"Relax," Zoro told them all, "Nothing to worry about.

Almost as soon as the ammo was out, at least a dozen pirate flags rose up from the bushes and trees around the upper cliff. They were all identical with the skull and crossbones, except for the mouth was making an 'O' shape, as if surprised.

Luffy was waving his arms excitedly as soon as he saw them. "THAT'S SO COOL!"

"Is this where we're supposed to be impressed?!" memory Nami yelled in frustration.

"Sometimes I wish he would be a little more serious instead of impressed," Nami sighed as she watched Luffy act like a little kid who was promised to see a cool trick. They heard a familiar laugh coming from above them, and when they looked up, they couldn't stop the smiles on their faces when they saw him. Usopp looked almost identical to how he was two years ago.

"I am Usopp!" memory Usopp declared loudly, as if for all the world to hear, "leader of the invincible nation of pirates who rein over this island! You stand before a living legend! The most revered pirated who ever lived! I am the great Captain Usopp!"

"Awesome Usopp!" Chopper cried, eyes twinkling as Usopp grinned up at himself. "I can't believe it! Why didn't you tell me all that?"

"Well, it never came up," Usopp told him smugly as the rest of the crew all shook their heads fondly at his antics. Chopper was just too naïve sometimes; even more so than Luffy was if you could believe that.

"But seriously," Usopp whispered in amazement, "Was that really me?"

"That's exactly how I remember you," Zoro agreed with Nami nodding.

"Yohohoho, so you liked to tell stories even then, Usopp-san?" Brook asked.

"Hey, look at Luffy," Robin said suddenly and they looked in time to see that the excited grin had been replaced with mild surprise, and perhaps… recognition?

"That's right," Franky said quickly, "He met your old man didn't he? Man, what are the odds?"

"Slim," Nami answered him.

"Surely you would know that plotting an attack on this island would mean certain death!" Usopp went on, "my army of eighty-million super mean pirate soldiers would squash you like bugs!"

"Awesome!" Luffy and Chopper both screamed in wonder as the rest of them stared at them in disbelief. In fact, memory Zoro and Nami both looked like they wanted to slap Luffy upside the head. But since the present-day Straw Hats knew Usopp, they found this more funny than stupid.

"You expect us to believe that?" Nami in the memory called up to him.

Usopp completely lost any confidence he had as he gasp, "She knows!"

"Yep," she smiled wickedly, "Well… now I know."

"How could I be so dumb?" Usopp cried out, now looking freaked out, not knowing what to do, "I practically told her I was lying! I'm such an idiot! So stupid!"

Past Nami stared at him, as if thinking that he was some kind of weirdo.

"I really didn't think that you would give in that easily," Nami told him as Luffy looked horrified that it had been a lie.

"Usopp why did you lie?" Chopper demanded, looking angry.

"Well," he said jerkily, rubbing the back of his head, "At the time I thought that they were evil pirates who were going to attack the village and I wanted to… try and scare them away. I didn't really have a back-up plan."

"But you think that you could've used a more reasonable number, Usopp," Robin said giggling. She was suddenly reminded of a story she heard of a long time about Pinocchio. A wooden puppet whose nose grew longer every time he told a lie…

"Curse you, you crafty pirate!" past Usopp cried out as he tried to regain control, "Eighty-million may have been an exaggeration," and he stretched his arms out wide and proclaimed, "but I have a great many men under my control!"

The Straw Hats all looked, and just through the bushes, they could see several kids there waving the flags nervously. Nami obviously saw them as well as she gave him a smug look and asked, "My guess is three?"

At that, the three suddenly jumped out, looking petrified as they screamed out in terror. "She does know!" all three of them screamed before they ran for their lives, dropping the flags and took off, almost crying.

"Chickens…" Franky burst out laughing.

"Yohohoho, I guess that they're your old crew?" Brook asked them as memory Usopp yelled for them to come back.

"Yeah, well… we were just a bunch of kids playing pirate," Usopp confessed. "I had no idea just what the world was really like there. But those days we spent together were fun times…" And unlike everyone else here, he supposed that he was the only one who had a _normal_ sounding childhood.

Memory Nami felt that it was safe to come from her hiding place and was now examining something on the beach. "A pirate using a slingshot, huh?" she asked, picking up one of the pieces of lead that Usopp had fired at Luffy's feet, and blew the sand off, "Well, now I've seen it all."

Luffy laughed good-naturedly at that and called up, "That's pretty cool!"

"Shut your mouth! Or I'll shut it for you!" Usopp yelled, suddenly looking angry, as he pulled out his slingshot. "I'm a proud man and I won't stand for it!" He held his weapon up after loading it, "This is your last warning! Or you'll get to see why they call me _Proud Usopp_ and not _Pushover Usopp_! Is that clear?"

"You weren't gonna give them a chance to explain?" Sanji asked, suddenly starting to feel annoyed. If he hit Nami…?

"I didn't fire it," Usopp admitted, looking up and watching Luffy pull his hat over his eyes carefully.

"You've already seen for yourself just how good I am with this thing," past Usopp went on, "so you know I can rival anyone carrying a pistol!"

"True… but that won't work against a Rubberman," Robin reminded him gently.

"Now that you've drawn your weapon, are you willing to use it?" Luffy dared in a low voice and Usopp looked distressed by the question.

"Guns aren't for threats, they're for action," Luffy went on in as his voice became cool and calm… not like his usual voice. They could only see part of one of his eyes under the hat's rim… casting the rest of his face in shadows. He looked quite unlike himself… like someone… sinister. "Are you willing to risk your life?"

"That's what Shanks said!" Chopper cried out, recognizing the words.

Zoro laughed, "Yeah, he wanted to scare Usopp."

He glanced at his past self who also realized this as he looked at Luffy for a moment before he began to grin, chuckling darkly in his throat. He loosened one of his swords just enough so that Usopp couldn't mistaken the glint of his blade. "I can assure you we're real pirates! Consider your next move very carefully."

"Why are you trying to scare him?" Chopper asked them, not understanding.

"For fun," Zoro grinned down at him. "We weren't gonna hurt him… he lied to us, so we lied right back."

Past Usopp was looking more and more nervous with every word spoke. His hand was shaking so much that there was little chance that he could hit them even if he launched the ball. But they didn't need to worry.

Like he said before, he lost his nerve and he let the lead ball fall to the ground just as he let go of the slingshot. He fell to his knees as he gazed down at them fearfully, but also with a hint of reverence.

"Just what were you going to do if they were there to attack the village?" Sanji asked him.

"I didn't think about it," Usopp confessed, "But I'd probably would've run away."

"Real pirates definitely have a lot more punch behind their words 'cause they can actually back them up," memory Usopp muttered, even from this distance they could hear his words. "That's so cool."

"And I know that they can back up their threats," Usopp confessed, "If you guys had chose to attack us, then we wouldn't have stood a chance."

"Hey," Zoro said to him as Luffy was lifting his hat up to get a better look at Usopp. "Give us some credit."

"I know that now," he muttered as memory Luffy and Zoro both burst out laughing. The Straw Hats, even Usopp, were laughing with them as well. This was just so heart-warming that they couldn't' stop themselves.

"You looked like you're about to wet yourself," Franky laughed.

"Well, it did sound intimidating," he admitted, knowing that Luffy _had_ scared him. Who knew…? You could scare someone without doing a thing. They do say that words are the most dangerous weapons you can have…

Luffy was done laughing and he called up, looking more like himself, "I stole that!"

Usopp blinked down at him, startled at that.

"I stole those words Red-Hair Shanks!" Luffy explained, "A pirate I know!"

Past Usopp eyes widened, unable to believe what he was saying, "What? You know Red-Hair Shanks! You really are a real pirate! Wait, you gotta be lying? Do you really know him?"

"Yep," Luffy told him, and what he said next really got memory Usopp's attention. "I know your dad too! His name's Yasopp, right?"

Usopp's eyes bulged out at those words, in fact, he was so eager to hear about his father that he leaned too far over the edge and fell. Rolling down the side, and landing with a crash on his back…

"That looked like it hurt," Brook said kindly.

"Not really," Usopp laughed awkwardly, "I was so excited to finally hear news about my old man that I didn't feel anything."

It seemed like he was right, past Usopp was now staring at Luffy. "You're right… my old man's name is Yasopp," he croaked out, getting up into a sitting position. "But how… how in the world do you know him?"

"I met him a long time ago!" Luffy told him happily. "But first… do you know any good places to have some meat?"

At that question, the Straw Hats laughed again. That was so typical of something for Luffy to say… if you want answers, then feed him first. Looking keen to hear more about his father, Usopp led them up the path and to a small village.

"Wow, it looks like such a pleasant place to live," Brook said cheerfully. Usopp stared around him, feeling at home as they headed to a small restaurant. As soon as they entered, Usopp waved to the owner behind the counter and asked for food. And in the end, they watched the group of four at the table and began to eat.

"Man, I'm starving," Usopp said, his hand on his stomach as he watched his past self enjoy the meal.

"I agree," Brook moaned, his hands over the place where his stomach would normally be. "If I don't eat soon, I fear I will be nothing but bones. Ah! But I already am! Yohohoho!"

"So how do you know my old man?" Usopp asked Luffy as they all enjoyed their meal

"I met your dad when I was just a little kid," Luffy said through a large mouthful of meat.

"Hold on, does my old man really know Shanks?" Usopp asked in excitement.

"Know him? When I met your dad he was part of Shanks' crew," Luffy answered him cheerfully, "so they were probably pretty good friends."

Past Usopp looked ecstatic at the news and present-day Usopp remembered why. This was the first time he heard about his father since he left home. "I can't believe it!" he said in hushed tones, "My old man, sailing the high seas with famous pirates!"

"I haven't heard from them in a while, but I bet he's still with him," Luffy went on, "He was a heck of a sharpshooter." He picked up an apple and smiled at it as if he was remembering something as he said, "I'd keep him on my crew."

And then, Luffy went on to tell him about how he met Shanks and his dad and how he would often watch Yasopp demonstrate his incredible shooting skills with a pistol… like shooting the core from an apple or how he could shoot an antennae off of an ant at one hundred feet away without harming the rest of it. Luffy also stated that he had never seen him miss a shot.

Usopp was listening in to everything Luffy had to say, his eyes were bright as he dreamt about the man his father was. It was such a cute scene.

"You'd think you two were old pals instead of just meeting just now," Sanji said smiling, pulling his cigarette out of his mouth.

Usopp grinned as he watched. "It was great… it was like we were best friends. I can't tell you how amazing it was to meet someone who actually met my old man."

"From what I gather, it was two years after your father left home did he meet with Luffy," Robin informed him.

"And that was around fourteen years ago," Usopp nodded. But he was lost in thoughts about his dad. He hoped that they'd find their Luffy soon… thanks to him, he was able to really see some moments of his father and he wanted to thank Luffy for that. Hearing about his father out on the seas and sailing with great pirates was a big inspiration, and one of the main reasons why he decided to leave home. If Luffy hadn't come to shore that day, not only would he have never found the courage to leave and go out with them, but he and Kaya would both probably be dead thanks to that evil Captain Kuro.

He longed for the day when he would meet up with his father. He remembered back when his mother got sick and died when he was still just a child… how he used to lie about pirates coming… hoping that it was his father's ship and would come to take him away. He started lying for his mother… he created so many lies to try and keep her spirits up and help her feel better. That dad had come back for them and they would all be family again. Even when she had died, he couldn't bring himself to stop telling that lie. Maybe that was why he grew so close to Kaya… when she lost her parents. He wanted to do what he could to cheer her up and want her to live.

"But really, even if Yasopp spent a year at Luffy's home village, he must have told him a lot about you if he was able to recognize you," Brook pointed out, "He never met you before, but he knew who you were on sight."

"Well, you do look a lot like your old man now that I think of it," Franky said and Usopp beamed proudly.

"He used to go on, and on, and on about his son," Luffy said, with an amused smile. "I think I heard enough about you to make my ears bleed. And let me tell you that he was a great pirate."

"Yeah? Really?!" memory Usopp exclaimed excitedly, as if wishing Luffy could tell him more. "I sure am proud of my old man. He went to live a pirate's life on the endless sea. He chose a life of real adventure." He looked up at picture of a pirate ship on rough waves, grinning the whole time.

Present-day Usopp now knew that Luffy was waiting for the day that he would meet up with Shanks… he too was looking forward to that. And when they do face Shanks's crew, he would be the one to take on his father! "Thanks for tell me more about him, Luffy," he added softly, wishing that he could've said that to him at the time.

"Maybe you can help us," past Nami said, causing Usopp to look at her. "Do you know someone who could provide us with a decent ship? Or, even someone who knows how to sail for that matter?"

Usopp gave a small sigh. "Well, it's a pretty small village. Sorry, but I just don't think we'll be able to help you."

"Did you really have to lie to us?" Nami whispered to him and he blushed.

"Yeah, but it's not _my_ money that we were talking about here," he pointed out. And the last thing that he wanted to do was make it look like he was taking advantage of Kaya. "And my home village isn't known for sailors. We get a few fishermen, but that's about it."

"But there was a mansion up on that hill wasn't there?" Robin suddenly asked, "I believe I saw one as we walked to the village."

"Yeah, but it's not like I live there," he said quickly as memory Zoro suddenly asked the same question.

"Hey, do you know them, Usopp?" Nami asked him hopefully. "With all that money, surely they can help us get our boat."

Usopp's face turned deadly serious as he stood up and said loudly, "You stay away from there!"

Everyone, both in the memory and out, were taken aback by Usopp's sudden hostility.

"Jeez bro, what's gotten into you?" Franky asked.

"It's nothing," Usopp said quickly as his past self suddenly looked very uncomfortable as well and stuttered out, "I… just remembered something that I really have to go do." He grabbed hold of his bag of tricks and went straight to the door without another look back, "Everyone knows me in this place, so… stay and eat as much as you want."

"I think those are words you soon come to regret after meeting Luffy," Sanji said to him.

"Well… got to go!" memory Usopp called back before he went running out the door. Robin, out of habit, kept her eyes on him the whole way until he was out of sight. She blinked in surprise, "You were going to the mansion?"

"Because I had to meet up with a very important friend," he said at once. "I went there almost every day… though I've never actually been _inside_ the mansion before."

"How come?" Chopper asked curiously, "And who's this friend?"

But memory Nami had suddenly asked the boys where they thought he was going, which they shrugged naturally and went back to eating their meal in peace. It didn't take long for them to finish their meals in peace and were just getting ready to decide what to do next when the door suddenly banged open.

"The Usopp Pirates have arrived!"

Everyone turned to see who had spoken.

"I believe it's those three who ran away screaming," Brook said good-naturedly.

"The Usopp Pirates," Usopp said proudly.

"But who are they?" Sanji asked.

Usopp grinned, "It was seven years ago when I met them," he said fondly. "We had all kinds of adventures together."

"I see, you must be close," Brook said softly.

"Yeah," Usopp said watching them. "That's Pepper," he said pointing to the boy with dark green hair that was in the shape of a green pepper. "And there's Carrot," he pointed to the freckled boy with short, spiky purple hair that covered his eyes and covered with a red hat, "And Onion…" he finished to the last boy with straight brown hair with a tuft sticking up at the top, and tiny eyes behind square glasses.

"Sounds delicious," Sanji said with a smirk, "Maybe you should've called yourselves the Veggie Pirates or something."

"Wow, so you guys were like Luffy and his brothers?" Chopper asked him excitedly.

Usopp thought it over. "Yeah, I guess," he admitted, "We went around and caused trouble in the village and acted like pirates… but we weren't as close as Luffy had been with Ace and Sabo."

"Yeah, you were known as the village troublemaker," Nami agreed and Usopp's happy demeanor disappeared at once. The three kids, meanwhile, were staring at the three pirates at the table with scared expressions.

"Captain Usopp is gone," whispered Carrot to the other two.

"Did they…?" Onion whispered before they all gulped. But they rushed at the table with their little wooden swords and looked ready for a fight.

"That is so cute," Robin giggled.

"Speak up, you filthy pirates! What have you done with our beloved Captain!?" Pepper demanded, "Tell us now!"

"Yeah tell us now!" the other two yelled with him.

"I'm curious to know just what they thought you guys did to you Usopp," Sanji muttered as Luffy patted his stomach, chirping at how good that meat was. At his words, the three turned ghostly white and huddled together fearfully.

"What meat!?" Carrot gasped.

"These pirates are cannibals…?" Onion added, sounding close to freaking out.

"Oh, they didn't think that pirates eat people did they?" Franky burst out laughing.

"Yeah, I doubt that Usopp here would taste good anyway," Sanji teased.

"Why is everyone picking on me?" Usopp demanded.

"Well, Luffy's not here so you'll have to do," Zoro smirked as the three Straw Hats in the memory all began to chuckle at the kid's expressions. Nami alone was having a hard time keeping her giggles in.

"What have you done, you savages!?" Pepper demanded in a scared voice as the other two hid behind him.

Something very strange happened then. Zoro casually leaned forward onto the arm and gave them all a dark and sinister look; though the Straw Hats knew him enough by now to know that this wasn't one of his 'I'm gonna kill you' smirks…

"If you're looking for your Captain…" Zoro said slowly before he gave them a twisted and psychotic smile that would make anyone else run for their lives, "We _ate_ him."

"You didn't…?" Robin said, smiling widely.

"AHHHHH, CANNIBALS!" the kids screamed in collected terror, though for some reason they were looking at Nami.

"Why are you punks looking at me for!?" she yelled as they all fainted, staring up at the ceiling with horrified expressions.

"That's great!" Franky roared with laughter as the rest of Straw Hats and memory Zoro and Luffy joined him. They were laughing so hard that tears were building in the edge of their eyes.

"You just had to say something stupid didn't you?" Nami scolded them both but even she was smiling as the boys twitched horribly on the floor.

"That was mean, Zoro," Chopper said to him, jumping up on his shoulder as he laughed.

"But it was funny," he grinned back. "It's not my fault that they believed me."

"Relax," memory Nami said, looking down at them, "Usopp's just fine."

"B-B-B-B-But you j-j-just s-s-said," Pepper stuttered horribly, pointing a shaking hand at Zoro who went into another round of laughter with Luffy.

"Can't you take a joke when you hear one?" she asked them irritability, "Usopp was here until about ten minutes ago. He said that he had someplace he needed to be and he took off. That's it."

"Right, why should we believe you?" Carrot demanded.

"You rather believe that we ate him?" Zoro asked, still grinning evilly and they shut up.

"Why were you so determined to scare them?" Usopp asked. Zoro just smirked back in a 'because I could' way.

"Zoro," past Nami snapped at him before she looked up to the owner behind the bar and asked, "Hey, didn't Usopp leave here a minute ago?"

"Huh?" he asked in mild surprise, "Ah, yeah…" he went back to his paper, "Your meal will be going on his tab by the way."

"Hey, thanks!" Luffy called happily.

"You did pay your tab before you left home didn't you?" Nami asked Usopp who blushed.

"Ah… ha ha… I think I'll do what Luffy did and put it on my treasure tab," he said awkwardly, hoping that they change the subject quickly.

"Really?" the boys asked, sitting up and looking at them cautiously.

"Yep," Luffy said happily, "And I wanted to talk to him a little more. Do you know where we can find him?"

So the three boys lead the three of them out of the restaurant and through the sleepy village. The boys were talking to each other in loud whispered about keeping their guard up, that these were dangerous pirates… but after a few rounds of laughter with Luffy they quickly warmed up to him and were now laughing at how they thought that they ate Usopp.

"The Captain sure is a social butterfly isn't he?" Robin asked cheerfully.

"It's hard not to enjoy yourself with Luffy around," Nami admitted, "When he isn't breaking something that is."

"Ha, you really had us going there," Pepper said as they walked around to the side of the manor. Surrounded by a tall gate on all sides was a beautiful two-story manor that looked to be about the same size as the Sunny, maybe even bigger. Wide windows and elaborate trimming all over and a tall tree on one side that stretched over to one of the side windows.

"Woah, this place is huge!" Luffy said staring at it.

"It's a beautiful house," Brook said in wonder.

"OW! Whoever lives here must be SUPER rich!" Franky called, striking his signature pose.

"Yeah!" Chopper said happily, looking at it. "But why would you be here Usopp?"

"Ah…" Usopp said nervously just as Onion answered, "And if our Captain ran off at this hour, then this is the place he's gonna be."

"Oh," Luffy said in surprise, "And what does he come here for?"

"He comes to lie," Carrot told him causally.

"He could've worded that better," Usopp sighed, "He's making it sound like it was a bad thing."

"Why would you be lying about at a place like this?" Sanji asked.

"To lie?" past Nami repeated with a frown, "That's terrible!"

"He's not a bad guy!" Pepper said. "He's great! Isn't he?" he added looking at his two friends.

"Yeah," Onion agreed.

"How is a liar awesome?" Zoro asked in confusion.

The boys looked up and it was Pepper who explained. "Well, Kaya… the girl who lives here has been in a terrible depression that's kept her weak and in bed after her parents got sick and died a year ago. She's very rich, but all that money couldn't help her recover from her sadness."

"Oh, the poor girl," Brook said sympathetically. Chopper was suddenly wishing he could get a good look at this girl and see if there was something he could do about it.

"Can a depressed person really become that sick?" Franky asked in surprise.

"Yes," Chopper said softly, "Depression can be serious. You lose energy and become very weak… in serious occasions, it can even cause death!"

"So the Captain comes to tell his special made-up stories to make her laugh and cheer her up," Onion went on happily.

"Captain Usopp is the best at telling lies!" Carrot added.

"Aw, you guys," Usopp said softly, missing his old crew more than ever. He wondered what they were doing right now…?

"Wow, that really is pretty nice of him," Luffy said thinking it over.

"That really is, Usopp-san," Brook said softly. "I'm guessing that this Kaya-san must be someone very special to you."

"H-hey, wait a minute!" Usopp said quickly, waving his hands firmly in front of him, "We're just friends that's all! I hardly knew her until after I heard about her parents and I came by to tell the stories to take her mind of things."

"That is something special to do for a lady though," Sanji said with increased respect. "And here I thought your lies were all just pointless stories."

"Watch it!" he said darkly just as the three boys all began talking about what they each liked best about Usopp. Usopp smiled at them, deeply touched by everything they said. In truth, he shared a deep fondness for Kaya due to her losing her parents and he wanted to keep her spirits up so that she could recover… he wasn't able to help his own mother and he didn't want to see anyone else go because of some stupid sickness. It was a great relief to see that she recovered a lot by the time that he left home.

"You mean she's not your girlfriend?" Zoro asked teasingly.

"NO!" he yelled, his face a little red.

"So when he tells her those stories he makes her feel better?" past Nami asked curiously.

"Yeah, lot's better," Pepper admitted.

Chopper frowned as he thought about how the story the Doctor had told him… how he had once been a master thief who was diagnosed with a fatal illness. When the rest of the world gave up on him, he wandered the countryside, searching for a place to die until he saw the serene vision of a grove of cherry blossom trees. By seeing those beautiful flowers, they inspired him to live and gave him hope. And he claimed that it been what saved him…

Chopper always strived to believe that as well. Here was another case of it… Usopp telling his crazy stories and making Kaya laugh must've taken her mind off being sick and helped her to get better. He smiled… who knew lying can be good for you?

That was all Luffy needed to hear to ask her for a ship, and then he stretched his arms out to attach to the bars of the fence, causing the three boys to scream in terror. They all knew what he was planning at once, even before Zoro, Nami, and the Usopp Pirates grabbed him. Luffy let go and they were all launched high into the sky.

"That landing is gonna hurt," Robin muttered, shielding her eyes as she watched them go flying.

"I'm gonna kill Luffy when we find him," Nami muttered to herself, a hand to her forehead as if she had a headache. "I don't know what he was thinking of.

Chopper suddenly picked up a smell with his nose and said, "Hey! Usopp's in there!" he said, pointing through the gate and at the thick tree.

"That's right," Usopp said grinning, "I used to sneak in through a hole in the hedge."

And without waiting, he walked confidently through the gate and gazed up at the tree. There she was… his past self was in a tree talking to a fairly tall, thin, and pale girl with blonde hair. Kaya… he felt his heart warm at the sight of seeing her again—even if she was still sick—it was good to see her face.

"WOW!" Sanji gasped, eyes turning back to hearts at the sight of her. "SHE'S SO DAMN BEAUTIFUL!"

"So that's your friend Usopp?" Chopper asked happily, but he was frowning a little when he saw her pale complexion. "But she really does look sick."

"Yeah," Usopp said a hint of sadness, "For about a year she's been like that."

But at that moment they could hear the echoing sounds above them and Kaya was pointing above Usopp's head. That was when the six people fell out of the sky and landed, rather painfully, in the lawn.

"Well that worked out well," Luffy said happily, he and Zoro leaving the sidewalk cracked from where they landed

"Yeah, real well!" Nami yelled both sarcastic and furious with him.

"Nami-swan, I hope that these two idiots didn't hurt you!" Sanji cried out at once.

"No," she said, rubbing her backside at the memory. "I've had a lot worse days than that."

"My goodness!" Kaya called, looking at them, "Are you okay?"

"Don't mind them, Kaya," Usopp said quickly and a little nervous, "This happens to me all the time! That's just the price of being a famous adventurer! They're just new recruits who heard about me and came to join the Usopp pirates."

"In what crazy, mixed up world?" Franky asked, knowing that he wouldn't be joining the Usopp Pirates anytime soon.

"Yeah, if I had to call you Captain, I'd know we'd be screwed," Zoro said.

Usopp sighed, hoping that they find Luffy soon so that they could stop making fun of him.

"Nope," Luffy said, getting up, "Not me, I came to see you." He looked to Kaya and asked, "I wanted to ask you a favor?"

"A favor? From me?" she asked in surprise. Luffy nodded and tried to ask her for a ship when someone interrupted them. They looked up in time to see a slim man with glasses and slicked black hair with slightly green tinge to it.

"Who is that?" Franky asked as he lifted up his sunglasses.

Usopp glared at him, his knuckles curling into fists, having forgotten about the fact he'd be forced to see him again. "Kuro…"

"Who?" Chopper asked, noticing the tense expressions on Usopp, Zoro, and Nami's faces.

"He was Captain Kuro of the Black Cat Pirates," Usopp hissed, feeling anger roar up inside.

"I've heard of him," Robin said in surprise, "Kuro of a Thousand Plans. Now I thought I recognized Ax-Hand Morgan's name… they say that he was the one who captured Kuro."

"Wait, that ugly bastard caught him?" Zoro asked her.

"It's what I heard," she said frowning, as she tried to remember. "Apparently, out of all the Marines who were sent to capture him, Morgan was the only survivor and brought Kuro back alive. And was later promoted for his bravery."

"Well that's not what happened," Nami said, glaring as Kuro came forward towards them. "Apparently Kuro set someone else up to make the rest of the world think that he had been killed. But he'd actually been hiding out in this village for three years as a butler so that he could steal Kaya's fortune. He'd been planning on killing her since he came here."

Chopper gasped as Brook said in outrage, "HOW DARE HE? HE PLANNED ON KILLING A YOUNG GIRL FOR ALL THAT TIME?"

"Oh, if I ever get my hands on him, there's not going to be anything left!" Sanji growled, glancing up at the girl and felt his anger grow. A sick girl like that? He truly didn't have a soul…

"Don't worry," Zoro said, still a little surprised that Kuro's plan made them have to deal with Morgan as well as this mess, "We took care of him."

"Klahadore," Kaya said.

"Get out," Kuro snapped, moving his glasses up with the palm of his hand as he stood in front of them, "I'll have you know that this is criminal trespassing."

"Yeah, he definitely has a stick up his ass," Franky muttered.

"Ah, actually, Klahadore," Kaya called, "These people are…"

"Not now, Kaya," he interrupted coldly, "You can tell me all about this riffraff after they've left."

"Riffraff?" Brook repeated angrily, "What does that make you?"

"Why does she call him Klahadore?" Chopper asked.

"Well if Kuro is dead, it's not like he can go around calling himself that," Robin reminded him.

Kuro walked forward, still messing with his glasses, "Now get out! All of you! Leave now unless you all have some business with me!"

"Alright," Luffy said agreeably, "Do you think you could help us get a ship?"

"Certainly not!" he yelled.

"Damn," Luffy whined in disappointment as Zoro clapped a hand on his shoulder.

"He takes rejection a lot better than when I met him," Sanji muttered impressed.

But then Klahadore looked up and spotted Usopp hiding in the tree, "USOPP!" he yelled. And then he began to put Usopp down because his father is a pirate. When he asked what he wants from Kaya, money or otherwise, Kaya got upset.

"Stop this at once, Klahadore!" she yelled at him, hanging dangerously out the window, "Apologize to him!"

"It's even worse hearing it all a second time," Nami said, looking at Usopp and said, "Don't listen to a word he says."

"I know," he said determinedly. "But I still don't like it."

"Hey, calm down Kaya," Usopp said worriedly, glancing at her.

"I don't believe there is any reason to apologize to this savage young man, Miss Kaya," Kuro went on silkily, "My goal isn't to slander…"

"Sounds like it to me," Zoro muttered.

"I am merely stating the truth," he went on before looking back up at Usopp, "I sympathize with your situation. You must hate your great idiot of a father for abandoning his family and his village because of his mindless lust for treasure!"

Usopp, both in the memory and out, looked furious.

"You jerk!" Chopper yelled.

"That's going too far," Brook said at once, "You shouldn't judge someone based on who their parents are!"

"Unfortunately the world isn't like that," Robin said softly as Kaya screamed for Kuro to stop.

Usopp looked furious as he glared down at him. "Don't you dare insult my father again!" he growled as he jumped, using a hook from his bag of tricks to get down. After drawing it back in, he continued to glower at Kuro, shaking in anger.

Klahadore laughed, "Why have you gotten so worked up, Usopp? It's times like this that you should do what you do best and lie. Tell me about how your father is really a travelling salesman. Or about how you aren't really related by blood?"

But he had gone too far. Usopp snapped and slugged him right in the face. The Straw Hats, other than Zoro and Nami, stared at Usopp. They had never seen him this angry…

"Wow…" Sanji said, "That's a first… I don't think I've ever seen you use your fist in a fight before."

"I was just so angry that I didn't care anymore," Usopp said, holding his head high. "I didn't know who Klahadore really was here, but I wasn't going to let him get away with what he said about my old man."

"CAPTAIN!" the Usopp Pirates cried out as Usopp stood above Kuro their shaking. Sitting up, Kuro tried to claim he was a savage who resorted to violence and insulted his father again.

"SHUT UP!" Usopp screamed out, taking Kuro by surprise, "MY FATHER LISTENED TO HIS HEART AND CHOSE A LIFE OF RISK AND ADVENTURE!" Usopp proclaimed, "I AM PROUD TO SAY THAT MY OLD MAN IS A BRAVE WARRIOR OF THE SEA! YOU'RE RIGHT, I HAVE BEEN KNOWN TO EXAGGERATE FROM TIME TO TIME, BUT I WILL _NEVER_ LIE ABOUT WHO MY FATHER IS! I REFUSE TO BE ASHAMED OF MY HERITIAGE! I AM THE SON OF A PIRATE!"

Silence fell upon them all as Robin smiled at him. Not just anyone would say something like that about their father if they knew he was a criminal.

"WOW! You're amazing, Usopp!" Chopper said, eyes bright.

"And I meant every word," Usopp said firmly, "It's true, I wished that I could've spent a little more time with him before he went out sea, but I'm glad that he did. When you go after your dream, you have to be willing to risk your life!"

But rather than be impressed, Kuro continued to laugh darkly, for a moment they could see the pirate in him. "Pirates are brave warriors of the sea are they?"

"Yeah!" Chopper said proudly as Brook held his sword high in agreement.

"I think it all depends on what kind of pirate you're dealing with," Nami said as she watched them.

"That's quite a twisted way of putting things," Kuro said getting back up and brush himself off. "You don't seem to understand that you are living proof of his savage blood."

Present-day Usopp's eyes narrowed.

"You run around sprouting lies and resort to violence when you don't get your way," Kuro went on, "To top it off, you cozy up to the lady of the house to steal her fortune."

"He only hit you because you deserved it!" Franky yelled out, wishing that they could hear him.

"Yes, and Usopp hasn't asked anything from Kaya," Zoro said, sharing a look at Usopp, "Right?"

"Of course not!" he said angrily. "I really only ever wanted to tell her stories and help to cheer her up! It couldn't have been any fun being stuck in bed all day!"

"You're wrong!" memory Usopp said at once, "I only…"

"YOUR FATHER IS A FILTHY, NO GOOD PIRATE!" Kuro bellowed out, "TREACHERY IS IN YOUR BLOOD! OF COURSE YOU HAD SUCH AN EVIL SCHEME!"

"And what does that make you, you lousy piece of shit?" Sanji demanded, still steaming at the thought of him plotting to kill a lady.

"You won't let up will you?" Usopp screamed, grabbing hold of the front of his coat and held up a fist. Finally Kaya begged Usopp to stop when he tried to him again, and he listened to her. He let Kuro go before he was given another warning about coming back to the mansion, which Usopp replies is fine with him as he marched away with his hands in his pockets.

"Funny that this shows you care more about her feelings than he does," Brook said softly, "Kuro didn't stop even when she told him to."

"I didn't want to make her more upset," Usopp confessed, "That wasn't good for her."

"Did you mean that?" Zoro asked him suddenly, "Not coming back?"

Usopp didn't say anything as he glanced up at her hurt expression. "No… I was just angry." He knew that he would've kept coming back until he was sure that Kaya was on the road to recovery.

"That's really sweet of you, Usopp," Nami told him gently. Meanwhile, the Usopp's Pirates insult Kuro for that, which Luffy agrees with—looking like he was ready to fight. But as Kuro warned them all to leave, Zoro had to hold Luffy back as the kids hid behind Nami in fear. With no other choice, the six trooped out of the grounds and Luffy went off to find Usopp.

"What a jerk," Franky muttered darkly. "How could anyone listen to that guy?"

"He was a very good actor to have fooled everyone in the village for three years," Nami admitted, "But that's all it's ever been. An act… he only pretended to care about Kaya so that he could take steal her fortune but he also wanted to make it look like an accident."

"But why would he want that?" Robin asked, "He could've stolen that fortune whenever he wanted."

"I'm sure we'll find out," Zoro said as they went following after Luffy, who was staring around, trying to track down where Usopp went. They walked on for a little while before he finally spotted Usopp sitting up on a high cliff that overlooked the sea.

"What's this place?" Sanji asked.

"I used to come here a lot to think things over," Usopp said as he walked around to look at his own past self's angry and hurt expression. He remembered exactly the feeling… the rage and helplessness that he couldn't really make that stupid butler pay for the things he said about his dad. Yes, there were time he had been angry at his old man for leaving, but at the end of the day, he was still proud to call himself his father's son.

And he looked forward to the day that he'd meet up with him to show him just how far he's come.

He watched Luffy gracefully jump to the tree branch above him and then hung upside down so that he popped right in front of Usopp's face. Usopp jumped and told him off for doing that, saying that he wanted to be alone.

Usopp smirked at that. The truth was he was glad that Luffy had come there after him… he remembered everything that he said about his father and it meant a lot that he had wanted to come talk to him, to agree that butler was an idiot. The two talked for awhile, about Usopp's father and how Luffy claimed he was a great man which cheered past Usopp up greatly as he told Luffy that he always looked up to his father and wanted to be just like him.

"Funny that you're telling all this to someone you just met," Robin said to him softly.

"He's easy to talk to," Usopp shrugged smiling. "For some reason you have a hard time not spilling your guts out to him… not that he always listens…?"

"That's true," Nami sighed, "I don't think he really cares about listening to someone's past."

"He doesn't," Zoro agreed, "He knows who we are… our pasts are all just extra. We're all a crew and that's what he cares about."

But when Luffy asked Usopp if he was going to see Kaya, Usopp stated he didn't know—that having that stupid butler there was always a pain. That was when Luffy pointed out Kuro down the cliff at the shoreline with a man wearing strange clothes and red-lensed heart-shaped glasses.

"He looks familiar," Sanji said, looking over the edge, "Wasn't he one of those stupid Marines who tried to attack us when we left Alabasta?"

"Yeah," Nami agreed, "I just didn't understand how a pirate could ever become a Marine."

"Hey Jango," Kuro snarled, "I specifically ordered you to remain inconspicuous. That doesn't mean sleeping in the road."

"I remember that," Nami said to Usopp as Zoro nodded. "We ran into him when Luffy went to look for you, Usopp. He looked insane."

"Why was he sleeping in the road?" Brook asked curiously.

"He's a hypnotist," Zoro explained, "And when he tried to hypnotize the Usopp Pirates he hypnotized himself too."

They let that sink in before Sanji muttered, "What an idiot."

"I couldn't agree with you more," Nami sighed.

"Relax man, I perfected the skills of a chameleon," Jango said, striking a weird pose. "I blend in."

"Like a zebra in a desert," Robin said as the crew all sweatdropped at the image of it.

"There's someone else with him and man is he weird," Luffy said watching them as Usopp forced his head down so that they wouldn't be seen.

"I've never seen him before," past Usopp whispered to him, "Who is he?"

"I'm sorry I found out," Usopp muttered. They all listened, and Jango confirms that the plan to murder the mansion owner is ready.

"Murder?" Chopper whispered with a gulp.

Kuro asked Jango to not mention the word "murder" and to stop calling him Captain Kuro. Jango laughed loudly at that as he told the story of how it was believed that Kuro was executed by the marines three years ago, but he managed to fake his own death and somehow found his way into Kaya's family, eventually becoming the ill girl's most trusted servant who was also beloved by the village. And now he was having the Black Cat Pirates attack the village and kill everyone…

Jango also found it amusing his former Captain declared he was bored with a pirate's life, faked his death, and secretly settled in the village, but he understood now that it had been planning this for all that time. According to Kuro, all Jango has to do is hypnotize Kaya to sign a will so he rightfully owns the mansion because 'Klahadore' is not a member of the family and therefore cannot inherit her fortune otherwise. Once the task is done he must then kill her so that everyone thought she will killed during the pirate attack. Jango mocked his former Captain, stating that if it was _him_, he would just invade the mansion and takes the riches without the trouble. However Kuro reminded him that would make him a pirate again. Jango mocked him once again for asking for a peaceful life when he plans to kill everyone to get Kaya's money, but Kuro states he did not expect some things like Kaya's parents death as they died unexpectedly in an accident.

"Why do I seriously doubt that?" Nami demanded, having not heard it herself, but feeling angry. "He lived with them for three years and he doesn't care about any of them?!"

"This guy is seriously evil," Franky growled, smashing his fists together, once again wishing he could deal with Kuro in his own way. Sanji and Brook were almost beside themselves at the idea that someone would want to kill Kaya like that.

"Damn," Sanji hissed, "I hope Luffy kicked his ass. If not, then I'll do it! I don't care about this being a stupid memory or not! I am going to kill him!"

Memory Usopp was staring in shock at what he was hearing but Luffy didn't have a clue.

"What are they talking about?" Luffy asked, clipping his sandals together, "Is it bad guy stuff?"

"How could he not understand that?" Nami demanded hotly. "You really are an idiot Luffy!"

Past Usopp agreed with her. "What?" he hissed at him, "Weren't you listening to any of that? Those guys aren't just bad they're evil!" He then told him what he knew about Kuro…

When Luffy finally understood, he did the stupidest thing he could have done. He stood up and shouted down at them, "HEY BAD GUYS YOU BETTER STAY AWAY FROM THAT GIRL!"

"YOU IDIOT!" most of the Straw Hats yelled, though they were all silently agreeing—having wished that they could've said the same thing. While Usopp was horrified at what Luffy did and tried to pull him down before he was seen, it was already too late. Kuro and Jango spotted the pair up on the cliff.

All of a sudden, Jango held up his ring. "Pay attention boys!" he called, "And watch this ring closely," he began to swing it back and forth as Usopp turned and hid, thinking it was some kind of dangerous weapon… but Luffy was staring at it transfixed.

"Luffy don't look at it!" Nami yelled, "He's trying to hypnotize you!"

Chopper screamed in terror and quickly hid his eyes at that as Jango finished speaking, "By the count of Jango… you'll be in a deep sleep! One… Two… JANGO!"

And then suddenly everything went dark and they were back in the forest in the middle of the night.

"What happened?" Sanji asked quickly staring around.

"He fell asleep and fell from the cliff," Usopp explained, and went into details about how he was sure that Luffy had died when he fell and how he went to try and warn the villagers.

"Interesting," Robin said softly, "It's rare to find people with such abilities in the world. Hypnosis is something that only a handful of people are ever able to do. And because our Captain sees the world in a straightforward and simple manner, it wouldn't take much to put him under such a spell."

"You got that right," Zoro agreed. It still amazed him how someone with such a strong will can be so easily manipulated.

"But you just left Luffy-san there?" Brook asked Usopp.

"I thought he was dead," Usopp tried to explain, "And I had to try and warn the villagers! Everyone I grew up with was there! All the people I knew were in danger! Kaya was in danger! I had to do something!" But he trailed off, "But I might've just not done anything for all the good it did…"

He understood why the villagers didn't listen to him. Why should they? He'd been lying for years about pirates coming to attack so why should they have any reason to listen now? But still, that didn't mean that he couldn't try.

"But why?" Chopper asked quickly, "You were telling them the truth!"

But before he could explain himself, the forest faded again and they were back at the cliff with Luffy sitting up, yawning as he looked around. Zoro, Nami, and the Usopp Pirates were all there when he saw them, the three boys were looking freaked out that he was alright. "Good morning guys," Luffy said brightly.

"I guess you finally found him?" Franky asked knowingly.

"We saw Usopp go running by, looking freaked out and we went to find Luffy," Nami explained with a smile. "We found him sleeping on the ground."

"What were you doing down here?" past Nami asked.

"I wanted to talk to Usopp," he replied brightly before he blinked, "Oh right… the village is gonna be attacked by pirates tomorrow."

"Well that's a blunt way to find out about your home is gonna be attacked," Sanji muttered darkly as Luffy explained everything that he and Usopp overheard.

"WHAT?" the three yelled, "PIRATES ARE GONNA ATTACK THE VILLAGE? AND THEY'RE GONNA KILL KAYA?"

"Yep," Luffy answered coolly, putting his hat back on, "That's what they said, no question about it."

"He sure doesn't seem concerned about it," Robin said.

"Well, it wasn't our problem at the time," Zoro said, "And now that we knew, we could've warned the villagers and the entire village could've been empty by dawn."

The three boys continued to look horrified as Zoro asked what made Luffy sleep down here. Luffy looked up and laughed, "That's the thing! I don't remember going to sleep or getting down here at all!"

As the boys talked about Usopp going to warn the villagers, Nami sighed in relief, stating that the pirates won't be able to hurt anyone because they'll be long gone by tomorrow.

"Not quite," present-day Usopp sighed and they listened to them all talk to each other before they all headed back to the village just as the sun was going down, casting everything in a warm, golden glow.

By the time they finally found Usopp, his back was to them and he was holding his arm as if in pain. The kids called at him, and he turned to look back at them with a happy expression—but for anyone who really knew him could tell that this smile was forced and looked painful. But as soon as he saw Luffy, he flipped out and ran over at him.

"Wait!" he gasped, "you're alive again?"

"Alive?" Luffy repeated in confusion, "Yeah, and I had a pretty good nap."

"I knew right then and there that he wasn't normal," Usopp sighed, "I mean, who survives a fall from a cliff like that?"

"He was sleeping the whole time," Pepper explained to him.

"Captain we heard all about the pirates and their evil plan!" Carrot added, but as they talked about warning the village, Usopp laughed said that he lied.

"Wait, that wasn't a lie!" Chopper said quickly, staring up at Usopp. "We all heard!"

"Yes, Usopp-san, why would you tell them that?" Brook asked, not believing what he was hearing. "I don't believe my own ears! Not that I have ears! But why?"

Usopp didn't answer as he watched. It was hard to watch the boys walk away, proclaiming how disappointed they were in him for that. But there was something strange… the four of them standing there in the setting sun together, completely left alone.

"Usopp?" Luffy asked before he had a sharp intake of breath, "Your arm!"

They looked, and that was when they realized that the blue and white sleeve he had was now stained with blood. Chopper screamed, "That's from a bullet!"

"You mean to tell me that someone shot you?" Franky asked at once.

Usopp nodded as he watched Nami examine the wound and told him to come with her so that they could get it treated. In the end, they followed them all the way down to the same shore that they had spied on Kuro and Jango. Nami had treated Usopp's would and bandaged it up.

"Not bad," Chopper said as he watched her dab it gently with a salve. "That's really the best that can be done… fortunately it was only a graze."

"But why would your own village shoot you?" Brook asked him but Usopp shook his head.

"Because they didn't believe me," Usopp confessed. Before they could really make sense of that, memory Nami declared that he was good to go.

"So, how come you lied to them?" Luffy asked him seriously.

"Because all I do is lie," Usopp said after a few seconds of silence as he stared at the bandage. They also watched Usopp tearfully tell them that no one in his village believed him since he was a known lair who couldn't touch Kuro's clean reputation. Apparently, Usopp had told lies about pirates invading every day for the last several years.

"And why would you do that?" Chopper asked.

"It started off as a way to help someone really close to me," Usopp told him softly, "But I kept telling it… and now… they didn't have any reason to believe me."

Past Usopp sighed as he finished telling them how he went to Kaya and tried to tell her, but she refused to listen and it was another one of her other butlers shot him and finished by saying, "There's no way that anybody was gonna believe what I had to say. Why should they?"

Memory Zoro stepped forward, "Because what you were telling them was the honest truth!"

"This is the problem with telling lies," Robin told him softly. "Sooner or later, they're gonna come back to haunt you."

"You think you'd learn your lesson after this," Sanji agreed.

"I know," Usopp said nodding, "But I don't need to lie so much anymore! I can actually do stuff now!"

"They are coming," past Nami said softly, "And they're gonna level this whole town."

"Yeah," Usopp said, "But what am I supposed to do? They'll think I'm lying if I try to warn them! Everyone in the village thinks tomorrow is gonna be another normal day."

But he gritted his teeth and stood up, a new resolve burning in his eyes. "They think I'm lying and that's all they need to think! I'm gonna stop those pirates at the beach tomorrow myself! This is all my fault for being such a liar!" he was shaking as he gripped his arm and said in a choked voice, "I don't care anymore if they drive me away with brooms or shoot me in the arm!"

That was when the Straw Hats all realized that Usopp was crying. He was scared to death, but he was willing to put his life on the line to try and protect the same people who hurt him. Franky and Brook were all sobbing as Chopper hugged their Usopp's leg tightly. The rest of them were smiling at Usopp who blushed a little but feeling a sense of pride of himself as he watched his past resolve.

"This is my village! It's my home!" he went on, trying to hold in the tears, "and I love everyone in it! I have to protect them!"

He said this part so quietly that they almost missed it.

"I can't take it! I love ya, man!" Franky cried as he pulled Usopp into a hug as he cried, "Willing to risk yourself like that!"

"Yeah," Usopp said softly. "Thinking back, I didn't know what I was going to do… if you three didn't come when you did then I know I'd be dead."

"That takes a lot of courage though Usopp," Robin told him, "Already, you were showing signs of courage."

And it was because of this that the three in the memory also smiled and looked ready to fight. Past Zoro gripped his swords tightly. "You're a hell of a good guy," he said grinning evilly at the idea of fighting, "Sending your cronies away and going into battle alone."

"Oh, so that's why you sent them away!" Chopper cried happily.

"Just so you know," memory Nami claimed, "I have dibs on all the pirate treasure you got it?"

"So you want a little help or what?" Luffy asked, holding up his fist for him to see.

Usopp was crying as he stared at them, as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing. "You guys…?" he gasped, drying the tears, "You're gonna help me fight all these pirates? I don't get it."

"You guys didn't know me but you wanted to help anyway," Usopp said softly.

"Seeing how determined you were to fight made us want to fight too," Zoro explained softly as Luffy flexed his fingers.

"Well, you said that there's a whole bunch of bad guys right?" he asked.

"And you look scared out of your mind," past Zoro added, looking at him. Usopp stood up and jerked his thumb at himself as he proclaimed, "For your information I have nerves of steel! I'm perfectly ok with tons of bad guys! After all you're looking at the legendary Captain Usopp! Brave warrior of the sea!"

His words lost their effect when they saw his legs shaking. Usopp noticed it as well as he hit his knees angrily to get them to stop. "Damn it…" he looked at them and snarled, "Alright fine, I'm scared! Why shouldn't I be? They're Captain Kuro's men! These guys mean business! I don't need pity! If you guys are sticking around cause you pity me, just leave! I don't need you laughing at me!"

"Why would you do that?" Brook asked, "You must've known that you couldn't do it alone. Even if it was pity, why not swallow your pride and ask if it meant saving your village?"

Usopp lowered his head as he gulped. "I know… it's just…" It's just that he was so used to living on his own… to be the son of a great man gave him a lot of pride. To lower his head and show humility was a hard thing for him to do. To admit when he was wrong was what almost ended up costing him his crew after all.

"We're not laughing at you," past Zoro said firmly, "we're helping because you are honorable."

"And that means a lot coming from you," Usopp said to him gratefully and Zoro smiled back.

"I meant it, if only you show that side more often," he teased.

"You really think we'd risk our lives out of pity?" Luffy asked, half his face darkened.

Past Usopp had more tears in his eyes at their determination. He rubbed at his eyes as he said, "I don't know how to thank you… but we have to hurry! We still have time before the sun rises! And we've got to set up some traps! They'll be here at daybreak!"

The forest came back and they were all staring ahead of them silently.

"Like what happened with ChouChou… if you're willing to fight, then he'll help you," Sanji said a bit of pride in him as he puffed his cigarette. "If you hadn't done anything, I doubt that they would've helped."

"No," Zoro confessed.

"I would've tried to at least warn them," Nami said softly, "But like Zoro said, it really wasn't our business. I am glad that it all worked out though."

"Me too," Usopp agreed softly. "I owe you three so much for your help. I… I wouldn't have been able to do it without you. Me and Kaya—and who knows how many other people could've been killed by that fake butler."

"Yohohoho, it's all so touching!" Brook declared loudly as Franky sobbed openly at that, pulling out his handkerchief to dab his eyes. And like that, the forest disappeared but they were all still in the dark. Looking up, they spotted the four of them watching the sea as the sky was slowly growing lighter with each second. Dawn was approaching…

"Ok," Usopp said as he marched up the hill with the others behind him, "At day break, the pirates will be landing at this shore to begin their attack."

Zoro and Nami both glanced at each other, knowing that was far from true…

"But the only way they'll be able to get to the village will be up this slope," Usopp went on, "The rest of the shoreline is sheer cliff so they have to come through here. If we can funnel them in that narrow path their numbers won't mean anything and the village will be protected."

"Alright," Luffy said, "Sounds pretty easy."

"Everything does in theory," present-day Nami sighed, running her hand through her long hair.

"Why do I get the feeling that something happened?" Robin asked in amusement.

"Because it did," Zoro said grumpily.

"Talking about it is," past Usopp said looking at them, "But victory depends on our strength. What is it you guys can do?"

"I slice," Zoro said darkly.

"I stretch," Luffy stated with a fist held high.

"I steal," Nami finished folding her arms.

"I hide," past Usopp said softly before the three got him in a headlock.

"WELL THIS TIME YOU BETTER FIGHT!" they screamed as Usopp tried to tell them that he was only joking.

"Do you really think now was a good time to make a joke Usopp?" Chopper asked him. "I mean…"

"It's always good to have a laugh before a battle," Usopp told him a little nervously. The truth was he meant what he said but Chopper seemed to buy it as he thought it over with a determined look in his eyes.

"Fighting was the least you could've done you shitty idiot," Sanji said, "If my little Nami got hurt here, I'll gut you!"

"Hey now, we all made it out alive," Usopp said quickly as the memory selves rolled out several large barrels of oil and poured it down the slope.

"I get it," Robin said watching it, "It's rather clever…"

"Not a bad idea," Franky said, "In a battle, it's always best to stay higher ground."

"Let's just hope none of us slip on that oil and end down there with them," past Nami said as Luffy cautiously touched the oil with his foot, "Because that would be like sliding into a meat grinder!"

"Your sense of humor is almost as bad as Robin's, Nami," Chopper gulped at the idea as Robin giggled next to him.

Luffy looked up at Usopp and said, "Usopp I gotta hand it to you. You're pretty good at fighting dirty!"

Usopp looked outraged. "Of course I am! There isn't anyone alive who can best me with a slingshot or beat me at the art of fighting dirty!"

"You say that like you're proud of it," Zoro told him.

"Hey, I'm a sniper and a trickster!" Usopp snapped back, "I'm not some monster like the rest of you! This is how I fight!"

The four smiled as Zoro looked out to the sea. He whispered softly, "It's almost daybreak… they're coming…"

They watched as the golden sun slowly rose up and above the ocean, spread a brilliant array of colors across the sea, turning everything into reds and yellows, causing the ocean to sparkle. It was hard to believe that a battle was going to begin with such a gorgeous sunrise… but strange enough… no one came.

They all waited for a long time, but they couldn't even see a trace of a ship or crew from anywhere.

"What's going on?" Franky demanded, shielding his eyes as he looked left to right at the water. "I don't see anyone! Think they all chickened out or something?"

"No, they didn't chicken out," Nami sighed as she shot Usopp an annoyed look.

"Look how was I supposed to know?" Usopp demanded as Luffy began to whine.

"Where are they?" he asked in a bored voice, "I thought we were gonna fight! The sun's up, what's the deal?"

"That's what I want to know," Brook said anxiously, "I don't know, I've got a bad feeling about this. It's giving me goosebumps on my skin. Not that I have skin for goosebumps, Yohohoho."

Zoro shrugged. "Maybe they overslept?"

"Oh, come on moss head," Sanji smirked. "Just because you're dumb enough to do something like that doesn't mean the rest of the world is."

"What'd you say Nosebleed?" Zoro snarled.

"No," past Usopp said determined, arms folded as he put an end to the arguement, "They're gonna show up alright… and lots of them."

They continued to wait, but still nothing… finally, memory Nami suddenly heard something, her hands behind her ears she said that she could hear something… battle cries to the north, that was when Usopp remembered the shore identical to this one that way.

"Only we could get something like this wrong," Nami sighed as she watched them panic.

"If it wasn't so serious, I'd think that'd be funny as hell," Franky smirked.

"We're at the wrong shore?" Luffy cried out, "That's not good!"

"Well, this was where they had their secret meeting so I just assumed ok?" Usopp yelled back.

"I guess you should've kept both pathways guarded and set up with oil just to have been on the safe side," Robin said to them.

"Thinking back, that would probably have been the best course of action," Nami agreed, glaring at Usopp.

"How was I supposed to know?" he demanded again.

"We need to hurry!" Luffy cried out, "Before they make it to the village! Where is it?"

"You have to head directly north from here!" Usopp said quickly, "If you run you can make it in three minutes! The terrain there is almost exactly the same so all we have to do is stop them at the slope!"

"I wish I went with him," Usopp whispered, thinking back to how he had been the first one there, and how he'd been stuck fighting alone until they showed up.

"Don't worry," Luffy said, "We're gonna stop them!"

"OH NO!" past Nami screamed in panic.

"What is it?" Chopper asked her worriedly.

"IF THOSE FILTHY PIRATES ARE AT THE NORTH SHORE THAN THEY'VE ALREADY SEEN OUR BOATS! THEY'RE TAKE OUR TREASURE!" she screamed.

"You're thinking about that?" Brook asked in amazement. "The entire village was about to be attacked, and all that you were thinking about was treasure?"

"You have no idea what I had to go through to get that stuff!" Nami yelled at him. "I needed that treasure!"

"I'll be there in twenty seconds!" Luffy declared and went running off as Usopp began to moan about how the oil plan was useless.

"Why do I suddenly have a bad feeling about this?" Sanji sighed as they gave chase as well. Luffy was chanting to himself the whole time, "Run straight north, run straight north."

"Luffy, you idiot!" Usopp yelled, "You're going east!"

"His sense of direction is almost as messed up as Zoro's," Nami sighed as they continued to run.

"So that's how I got to be the first one there," Usopp said as he watched Luffy run around in a panic, getting turned around and end up running to the village instead.

"The village?" he gasped, "That can't be right? He said run north and I ran in the coldest direction so I should be at the shore!"

"You idiot!" Nami groaned, slapping her forehead. "How could he think that?"

"Yeah, he's supposed to keep going up," Zoro said, knowing that north always meant up.

"NORTH AND UP AREN'T THE SAME THING DUMBASS!" Nami yelled again as Luffy turned and began running. While trying to find them, finally they heard the sounds of battle cries and screams and he followed that. That was when he ran into Zoro who was covered in oil, and looked ready to kill.

"Hey, Zoro," he gasped, "You hear them?"

"Yeah," Zoro gasped back, "And if you're still alive Nami I'm gonna kill you for this!"

"What'd she do?" Luffy asked.

"She pulled me down into the oil and left me down there!" he yelled, "I'm gonna get her for this!"

"What happened?" Robin asked, though she had a very good idea to how it happened.

A nasty look came over his face as he glared back at Nami. "Nami here tripped in the oil slick and pulled me down," he snarled as she gave him an innocent look.

"I told you before that was an accident!" she tried to tell him.

"You slipped and dragged me down so that you could get me out!" he yelled at her.

"A worthy sacrifice," Sanji said without hesitation.

"You shut up before I cut you!" he yelled at him. Finally, they burst through to the shore and saw the mob of Black Cat Pirates running towards them. In a way to vent their anger, Luffy and Zoro went to town, sending pirates flying everywhere.

"Wow, these guys are no match," Chopper gasped eagerly.

"Did you expect any other way for it to turn out?" Zoro smirked as he watched his past self kick their asses back down the slope, and finding past Usopp and Nami there on the ground, staring at them, with Usopp looking pretty beat up.

Chopper screamed, noticing the blood dripping down his face, "Usopp what happened to you?"

"I got beat up," he admitted shamefully, and after seeing how easily that these two dealt with them made him feel worse.

"But I bet you could take them all down by yourself now," Robin pointed out and Usopp looked up, cheering up a little at that thought.

"What is this Captain Jango?" one Black Cat pirate gasped out.

"Nobody one told us that killers like those were gonna be here!" another screamed.

"They couldn't have picked a worse day to attack," Sanji said with a grin. "If they had just attacked one day sooner, then the plan might've worked."

"Yeah," Usopp said softly silently grateful that the three had decided to come to _his_ village for supplies.

"It's about time!" past Nami yelled at them.

"You think you'd be a little more grateful that we came at all," Zoro snarled at her and she looked embarrassed a little.

"I'm sorry," she said, though she didn't sound sorry at all.

"Is that the best those pirates can dish out?" past Zoro asked.

"Yeah, I was hoping for a challenge," Luffy gasped for breath.

"And you!" memory Zoro yelled at memory Nami, looking truly ticked off at, "After leaving me down there you're lucky I'm not kicking your butt too!"

"How dare you yell at Nami, Moss Head!" Sanji roared at him.

"She deserved it!" Zoro yelled back at him.

"Usopp you big bone-head!" Luffy suddenly yelled, "You never told me direction way was north!"

"How is that my fault?" present Usopp yelled as his past self stared in wonder. Staring from them to the beaten pirates and back.

"Could you have been slower?" past Nami demanded, glaring at them, "What took you so long?!"

"Again, whose fault is that?" present-day Zoro demanded of her.

"You got out didn't you?" she demanded back.

Past Zoro looked furious too as he suddenly yelled, "You're the one who pushed me down that oil slick so _you_ could get out!"

"It was an accident!" past Nami yelled, "_I _slipped, _you_ fell! At least one of us made it out of there, that's better than both of us being stuck at the bottom."

'_Doesn't sound like an accident to me,'_ Chopper thought to himself.

"It should've just been you!" past Zoro yelled.

"Again, I'm gonna kill you for how you're treating Nami-swan," Sanji hissed at him.

"Oh, shut up!" Zoro snapped.

"Run straight north he says," Luffy complained. "That's just great! I mean, how am I supposed to know which way north even is out here, huh?"

"He's hopeless anyway," Nami sighed.

"Shut up!" memory Usopp yelled back, "_You're_ the one who ran away feeling so sure of yourself, ready to take on anyone."

"Well, I just got so excited I just started running you know?" Luffy said lightly.

"And how is that my fault that he got lost?" Usopp asked the rest of them who shrugged. "How was I supposed to know that he can't tell north from south?"

While they had been arguing, the Black Cat Pirates were all around Jango who had his ring out and was once again swinging it back and forth.

"What's that freak doing now?" Franky asked.

"Here," Jango said in a slow and deep voice… "Stare deeply into this ring… now I'll count one, two, Jango and you will all begin to grow stronger. The wounds will heal and you will grow stronger still!"

"So what is he doing?" Luffy asked, finally noticing it, "Look weird."

"It looks like hypnosis," past Nami said skeptically, "He's trying to convince them they're stronger than they are. Like that'll work."

"Boy was I wrong," Nami sighed.

"How does it work anyway?" Brook asked.

"To put it simply, he's planting suggestions in a person's mind," Robin answered him, "He's trying to trick you into believing what he wants. When he tells a person that they are feeling tired, their mind hears that and it's almost like he's trying to _will_ them to sleep… when he's telling them that they're stronger than they usually are, he's hoping that their minds will be tricked into thinking that as well. It doesn't work on everyone…"

"And Luffy's staring at it," Sanji said worriedly as he watched Luffy staring at the swinging ring.

"Stronger… and stronger… STRONGER!" Jango cried out. "One… Two… Jango!"

And as soon as he said that last word, the crew roared—their eyes were milky white and they were back on their feet—their battle with Luffy and Zoro already forgotten as they ignored their wounds. Their muscles seemed to grow and one of the pirates punched the side of the cliff with such force that it cracked and collapsed.

As their memory selves started to panic and wonder what to do, the Black Cats looked ready to charge. Luffy didn't say anything as Jango commanded them to go and destroy everything in their way. Past Zoro told Nami and Usopp to move while they took over… but when he asked Luffy what they should do… Luffy roared, his eyes were as white as the other pirates.

"You've got to be kidding me!" Sanji yelled, "That idiot!"

"Actually it wasn't all that bad," Usopp smirked at the memory, "He took care of all of them and saved us the trouble."

"Don't tell me you let that freak hypnotize you too?" past Zoro screamed in annoyance.

Rather than answer, Luffy ran ahead, looking ready to fight. Past Usopp was having trouble walking and was forced to hang on Nami's shoulder as she cried out, "He really is a simple-minded idiot!"

"Great minds think alike," Nami smirked at that as she watched her Captain continue to charge, roaring like a wild animal the whole time.

"GUM GUM GATLING!" Luffy screamed out, and like that, he took them all out—not having a clue to what hit them. They were lying bruised and bleeding at the bottom of the slow with Luffy growled like a beast. The Straw Hats couldn't blame the Black Cats one bit for looking up at him in terror… and they sure didn't blame them when they turned and ran when Luffy charged at them again.

They thought for sure that he was going to attack them all again, but instead he outran them all and headed for Jango. Thinking he was about to be attacked as well, Jango cowered in fear, but again Luffy surprised them all by running right by them and straight to the ship.

"What's he gonna do?" Franky gasped just as Luffy grabbed hold of the bow of the ship

"He isn't…?" Chopper cried.

"I think he is!" Robin answered as she watched him heave against the heavy bow. Groaning furiously, forcing his muscles to pump out, Luffy pulled and they could hear the whole ship creaking and cracking.

"He's gonna destroy a perfectly good ship!" Franky cried, amazed and horrified at the same time.

Memory Nami was cheering him on the whole way… "That's right! Tear it down!" she screamed out just as with one last heave, he broke off the entire bow.

"AMAZING!" Brook cried out, "My eyes are gonna pop right out at the sight of it! Not that I have eyes at all!"

Breathing hard, Luffy looked back to the Black Cats with an evil look in his blank eyes. At once everyone knew what was gonna happen and the Black Cats were all crying in terror.

"He's gonna crush them all!" Chopper cried out horrified.

"Relax," Zoro said, "No one dies… at least not by Luffy's hands."

"He's gonna crush us with it!" one of the pirates screamed, "Everybody run!"

And like that, they ran away, back up the hill as Luffy marched forward with the bow, shaking the ground with every step. The crew was begging Jango to do something as he came closer… the vice-Captain was staring around desperately before he remembered the ring and pulled it out to order Luffy to fall asleep once he counted to Jango.

"One… Two… Jango!" he screamed out desperately. At that one last word, darkness fell, ending the memory so that they were back in the forest… the last thing they heard was an enormous crashing sound and the screams of the Black Cat crew.

"What happened?" Chopper gasped, staring around, as if hoping that someone could explain.

"That idiot fell asleep and dropped the bow," Zoro explained in a bored tone, "Which landed on top of the entire crew."

"But no one was fatally killed," Nami added at some of the crew's shocked expressions. "Everyone was so freaked out that I think they would've run for the hills if Kuro didn't show up."

"Wait, Kuro showed up?" Franky asked, still recovering from what he just saw.

"Yeah," Usopp said, "Zoro was forced to fight two other members of the Black Cats who stole two of his swords and…"

Zoro stood on Usopp's foot. "Shut up."

"Wait, you mean Moss Head had his swords stolen by some freaks like them?" Sanji laughed.

"It was funny now that I think about it," Nami added as Zoro shot her another annoyed look. "I think they were called the Nyaban Brothers or something like that. They pretended to be cowards and Zoro believed that it would be an easy fight but it turned out to be a hoax, and he ends up having two of his swords stolen."

"That was when Kuro showed up," Usopp went on, "and those two brothers tried to attack him."

"They attacked their former Captain?" Brook asked softly.

"Well, he was insulting them," Zoro added, "Calling them weak and they went after him for saying that."

"But he didn't grow weak at all," Nami sighed, "He got behind them and threatened to kill them both. But he gave them five minutes to kill all of us or he'd kill them."

"Not actually a close-knit group huh?" Franky asked with a deadpan expression.

"Crewmates shouldn't treat each other like that though!" Brook called.

"I'm afraid that there are a lot of crews just like that," Robin answered grimly, knowing that all too well.

"And Luffy slept through all this?" Sanji asked exasperatedly.

"Yep," Zoro muttered, jerking his thumb at Nami, "Until she went and stepped on his face."

Almost as soon as the words were out of his mouth did everything came back at once; they were still on the shore of the cliff just like in the last memory. Only this time, Luffy was lying crushed underneath the bow with Nami stepping on his face. But what she didn't realize was that the same ring that Jango used to hypnotize people was flying towards her, the blade glinting dangerous in the light.

"NAMI!" Sanji screamed, dropping his cigarette as he ran forward to intercept the attack.

"Hey, stop that!" Luffy grumbled, from under Nami's foot. But Nami didn't notice it as she stared back at the ring, unable to turn away.

Just then, Luffy grabbed hold of Nami's ankle and got up, causing her to trip. "NAMI!" he yelled, "YOU CANNOT JUST GO AROUND STEPPING ON PEOPLE'S FAC…" but he didn't finish that sentence for the blade missed Nami and went right into Luffy's face.

"That's either best timing, or the worst in the world, I can't tell," Sanji whispered as he watched Nami fall and Luffy's body get forced back.

"It didn't really hit him did he?" Chopper asked fearfully, that ring looked sharp enough to have done a lot of damage. And Luffy's weakness was against sharp objects…?

"Eh, Luffy?" past Nami whispered from the ground, holding onto her shoulder as she watched. But when Luffy stood upright they could see that he had caught the ring by his teeth, and by biting down on it, he shattered it.

"LUFFY!" Nami cried happily, but the side of Luffy's mouth was cut and he let out a loud scream of pain when he touched it.

"Big baby," Sanji said shaking his head. "He has no problem getting beaten to within an inch of his life, but a little cut and he's crying."

Robin shrugged, "Just another mystery I suppose."

But the Black Cat Pirates were all staring at him in fear, and they all knew that they could only be terrified at the thought of being forced to deal with him again. At the moment, Luffy's attention was focused only on Nami. "Hey, that hurt you jerk! Why'd you do that?" somehow convinced that she was responsible for throwing that ring.

Looking ticked off she screamed back, "Hey, sleeping beauty that wasn't me!" But then her eyes suddenly glazed over, "It wasn't… me…"

And then she fell back onto the sand, holding onto her right shoulder—that they suddenly realized was bleeding.

"AHHHHHH!" Sanji screamed out in horror. "Oh NO! NAMI WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU?"

"That stupid hypnotist got me," present-day Nami sighed and Sanji looked ready to kill.

"How dare he?" he growled furiously, suddenly burning hot, "THAT SHITTY BASTARD! HOW DARE HE? I'M GONNA KILL HIM!" he then ran forward to kick that bastard into next week, but he only roared in outrage when his leg went right through him. Screaming in fury, he screamed profanities at the sky, causing some members to cautiously back away from him in fear.

Luffy's anger faded almost at once when he saw the wound. "Are you ok? Nami?" he asked worriedly, "Did you get hurt? Let me see it."

"It's nothing," she said, shaking her head, but blood was soaking her sleeve, "I'm fine." She let him know that she did everything she could, and asked Luffy to fight for her treasure, which Luffy sighed, as if being told to take out the garbage.

"You sure spoiled the good mood," Franky muttered watching Luffy pick up his hat. "You never change, sis."

"Well, the treasure was my greatest priority at the time," she said firmly as Luffy put the hat back up and told her he'd do it… but he sounded like a child forced to do his chores to keep his mother happy.

Meanwhile, Zoro was facing a overweight man who wears an outfit that made him look like a black and white cat—and he even had a ridiculously large bell around his neck, Jango was still at the bottom of the slope and was staring at the broken ring that now laid on the ground, and Usopp was lying near the top of the hill nursing his injuries.

But everyone's attention was focused on Kuro the butler who was standing up on the hill, overlooking the scene with the strange weapons on his hands. They looked like fury gloves with full-length katana blades at the end of each finger.

"One minute, and counting," Kuro said, in a bored tone.

"He's kidding right?" Franky asked, "Does he honestly think that these losers could beat you buys in one minute?"

The pirates apparently thought the same thing as they cowered away from Luffy, as if thinking that he would kill any of them if he got too close.

"I'm coming for you Straw Hat!" Jango called as the fat cat fought with Zoro.

"You've got to be kidding me?" Chopper said and the whole crew sweatdropped.

"Is this really the best that the East Blue had to offer?" Franky muttered.

"Well, the East Blue is known as the weakest for a reason," Robin offered. But it was too late—their time was up. Kuro declared that their five minutes were done and he held up his claws, ready to kill everyone on the slope… what he didn't notice was that there was someone running towards them.

"Hey, isn't that Kaya?" Chopper cried in panic just as Kuro's eyes widen angrily.

"Don't ever sneak up on me!" Kuro yelled, stretching his fingers and making his weapons clink together, "Unless you want to die!"

"He's gonna kill her!" Brook screamed, looking read to run forward with Sanji but Zoro held them both back.

"Relax," he said, "Usopp handles it…"

As soon as past Usopp realized the danger, he jumped up and went running in. The Straw Hats all stared as Usopp managed to tackle her to the ground before Kuro could slash her.

"Nice save Usopp!" Chopper cheered, "Go! Go! Go!"

"Damn, why can't you be this brave when you fight with us?" Franky asked in a teasing voice. Sanji calmed down as Usopp and Franky began arguing. His respect for Usopp just went up… anyone who would risk their lives for a woman deserved that from him.

"No, Usopp," Kaya gasped as he now laid there. "Are you ok?"

"Were you hurt?" Brook called worriedly as Chopper went running up the hill to get a better look at him.

"No, he missed," Usopp said, thinking of those wounds, "But I got hurt before and it wasn't easy to move around after a beating like that."

"Kaya what are you doing here?" past Usopp croaked out, looking up at her.

"Oh, Usopp, I'm so sorry," she said mournfully, and she truly did sound like it, "I don't know how you'll ever forgive me. I just couldn't believe it. That Klahadore is a scheming, murdering pirate!"

"How did she find out? I thought she didn't believe you?" Robin said to him.

"Last night, Kuro attacked another servant but he survived and told her what happened," Usopp explained as he thought back to what Kaya told him.

"That was dumb," Zoro said rolling his eye, "At least wait until the attack before doing something like that in case he did live."

"Never mind that," memory Usopp gasped and Kaya's eyes welled up with tears. "Why are you here?" he went on, "Kaya, your life is in danger! I told you to run somewhere safe!"

"I have to respect you here, Usopp-san," Brook said softly, "You were willing to die to protect that girl."

"If I didn't do it who would?" Usopp asked, "What I don't get is why? Why would she come here? If she knew what was going on, why?"

"She may look fragile, but I guess she's stronger than she looks," Robin smiled softly.

"It's like they say, it's not the size of the dog in the fight that matters, but the size of the fight in the dog," Franky grinned.

"I won't! You're still here fighting! I won't run!" Kaya screamed out, and tearfully she said next, "You… fought for me after I treated you so badly! Look at you you're barely alive but you're still so brave. I just…"

"That's so sweet," Brook said tearfully.

Sanji was suddenly frowning. How'd that idiot get such a hot girl crying over him like that? Just what was Kaya about to finish saying?

Kuro suddenly spoke up. "This is no place for a lady. Madam, please leave."

"How dare he?" Sanji snarled, flames licking his legs again at the thought. That bastard had lived with that girl for three years and betrayed! He'd been plotting to get her killed probably since the day they met and he suddenly had the gall to use that tone?

Kaya's face froze before replaced by rage. Glaring fiercely at Kuro she yelled at him to stop. Kuro's face looked mildly annoyed as she stood up and told him that she would give him her fortune. That he could have everything if he left the village alone and to never come back.

Kuro then admitted to Kaya that he did want her money, but what he wanted more than that… was peace. He then told her that despite her plea, the Black Cat Pirates will still attack Syrup Village and kill her. The Straw Hats were taken aback that Kaya then pulled a pistol from her coat and pointed it at Kuro as Usopp pleaded for her to just run. But she says that he wasn't Klahadore anymore. She threatened to kill him if Kuro and the rest of the Black Cat Pirates don't leave Gecko Island this instant.

"You go girl!" Franky cheered on.

"You tell him, Kaya!" Chopper added loudly.

Kuro sighed as he pulled one of the Cat Claws off and told her that she became 'stronger' over the last 3 years, that she wasn't that little girl that he took care. He then recollects the events of the last 3 years with her, the things they did together in a gentle voice that brought her to tears.

"That's a dirty trick," Usopp growled, knowing that Kaya wouldn't be able to forget all that easily.

"He knows that," Robin said softly, "By bringing up all those memories, he's trying to make her second-guess herself. He's getting to her."

Kaya's hands were shaking by the time that Kuro grabbed hold of the gun. But then, with a change of tone, he calls the events 'stupid things' and confesses that everything he did for her was merely an act that he'd been plotting for her today… the day she dies. That by spending those years with her was an insult to his pride. He took the gun from her and let it drop to the ground as tears burned in Kaya's eyes. His face full of fury, Usopp grabbed the dropped pistol and tried to shoot him, but Kuro used, what he called his PussyFoot maneuver, to reappear behind him with his Cat Claws gloves back on. He said that he was gonna kill him to make him pay for punching him, but his attempts were stopped by Luffy who hit him from the bottom of the slope with his Gum Gum Pistol, sending him to the ground. Luffy then swore that Kuro was in for a bad day if he hated getting hit.

"YEAH! Take him out Luffy!" Chopper screamed out as Sanji wholeheartedly agreed as he looked to Kaya's tearstained face.

Damn Kuro… how dare he hurt a lady like this? Any man who causes tears to a woman like that doesn't deserve to live.

The Black Cat Pirates were freaking out as they stared at Luffy, who held up his fingers and cracked them all threateningly. He was just getting started, and with everyone's attention focused on him, the Straw Hats almost missed Nami going to search the ship to search for the pirates' treasure despite her wounded shoulder.

But at that moment, the Usopp Pirates arrive and began a merciless beating on Kuro's face as hard as they can with a shovel, a frying pan, and a bat, yelling out insults.

"They're gonna get killed," Chopper screamed out.

"I can't tell if they're being really brave or… nuts," Franky said, staring at the little guys with sweat coming down his face. Usopp and Kaya tried to scream at them to stay away, but they refuse to listen, too busy at beating Kuro's face until they were exhausted and decided that they would let him off with a warning.

"They're dead," Robin muttered.

"Do you have to say that so bluntly?" Usopp yelled at her as the Usopp Pirates went to Usopp and they argue with him for not telling them about the fight. Usopp begs them to run away, but the kids refuse to, saying it will only ashamed the Usopp Pirates if they ran in fear.

"They look scared to me," Brook said softly as Kuro suddenly got back up, making the kids scream in terror. But to their surprise Kuro ignored them and went straight to Usopp and with a hard kick, slammed him to the ground.

Chopper screamed. "Oh no! And Usopp's injuries already look bad!"

"They really weren't that bad," Usopp confessed to him softly, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry… I recovered fast from this."

But Kuro's attention was now back on Luffy as he asked if he has eaten a Devil Fruit which Luffy admitted. This news frightens the Black Cat Pirates even more and looked ready to run until Kuro ordered Jango to take care of Kaya and the Usopp Pirates while he dealt with Luffy. Memory Zoro tried to stop him but the fat pirate named Buchi charged forward to attack him, leaving a crater in the ground where he landed and even destroying part of the wall. So with Zoro focused on dealing with him, Jango went to Kaya.

"Damn, they better do something or Kaya-san's in big trouble," Sanji gasped, wishing more than ever he could kill Jango.

"Don't worry. Usopp's big speech is coming up," Zoro grinned as Usopp blushed at the words.

"Speech?" Brook repeated in surprised and he had his answer at once when Usopp in the memory screamed out desperately for the kids to listen to him. At first, they refused to listen to anything he had to say until he gave them one order… "Protect Kaya!" he ordered them.

The Straw Hats all watched, some of them in awe as Usopp went on, "Do as I say. Don't argue with me! I'm giving you the most important task there is right now. It's absolutely critical you succeed!"

Robin nodded. Yes, keeping Kaya safe was the most important thing right now. So long as she was alive then Kuro could never win.

"Take Kaya and get away from here," Usopp said loudly, leaving no room to argue, "You must keep her safe. This is the reason we wanted to become pirates! To protect what's dear to us! Now do as I say and RUN!" Gasping for breath, the three more sensitive members had in tears at the convincing in his voice, the Usopp Pirates were all nodding in understanding. "Now go," Usopp finally yelled, "that's a direct order!"

Tears in their eyes they cried out, "YES CAPTAIN!" And taking Kaya, they lead her away into the forest.

"That was something else," Brook said softly as Chopper and Franky cried at that. "You certainly have a gift with words when it comes to defending your friends, Usopp-san… not anyone could make running away sound brave."

"I had to say something to get them to go," Usopp said, tears in his own eyes, feeling pride at his decision back then. He rarely felt it, but it was this moment that he was proud to have been weak Usopp… even if he was just a kid who was playing pirate, he didn't regret anything he did here.

As Jango tried to go after them, his past self hit him in the back with a ball of lead. Even with Jango looking ready to kill, Kuro yelled at him to continue chasing after Kaya before he said to Usopp that escape was useless, since he knew that Kaya was so weak. He then ordered Buchi to finish Zoro off, but after finally pushing him off him, Zoro had finished him in one slash.

While the whole time, Luffy had slowly been walking up the hill, towards Kuro, as Usopp tried to get back up to go after Jango. He managed to get up a little before they all heard a noise coming from the forest. In rage, Usopp demanded to know if Kuro had any pity at all for Kaya… but what the butler said next got them all steamed.

Kuro came right out and admitted to him that him he had none—saying that Kaya had never been anything more than a pawn to his plan and he'll express gratitude once she's dead.

"What a heartless monster," Brook growled, his teeth grinding so hard together that it sounding like they were cracking.

"This guy's hopelessly evil," past Zoro muttered and no one, not even Sanji, could disagree with him on that one.

"We should put him out of his misery," Luffy agreed before he yelled to Usopp to go to Kaya and the Usopp Pirates and that he would take care of Kuro. At his words, Usopp had managed to push himself back to his feet, despite his wounds. Kuro was slightly impressed that he could still move but continued to mock him.

"Oh, there are just so many people here I'd love to punch!" Franky growled. "I say that we all go back to the East Blue and teach these pirates a lesson!"

"I have no complaints there," Sanji agreed, wanting nothing more than to beat this guy's brains in.

Usopp glared back at him before yelling out, "Shut up! You won't get away with this! I won't let you! You betrayed the villagers trust! Not to mention you planned to take the life of a sweet, young girl! This is the last time you ever get your way!"

"Usopp!" Luffy cried in worry as the sniper tried to walk, but his strength gave out so that he fell back to the ground. Kuro laughed at Usopp's effort and taunted him by saying that even if he _did_ manage to get to Jango, he'll end up dead and that he should be safest where he stayed there.

But Usopp wouldn't listen. "I don't care," he croaked out from where he lay, "I don't care if I'm weak! I'll protect them!"

Everyone stared at him as the tears suddenly came back to his eyes, tears that he wasn't ashamed of hiding here. "I'm Captain of the Usopp Pirates," he declared, "A brave warrior of the sea who fights for what he holds dear! I will protect everyone in the village even if it kills me!" his voice got stronger and he screamed out with as much strength he could muster, "ON MY WORD! YOU WILL NEVER SET FOOT IN THIS VILLAGE!"

Franky broke down completely at that, hugging Usopp again, "Man… that's so touching! I don't believe what I'm hearing! You're a real man… you were hurt so bad but you kept on fighting! I think I feel a song coming up!"

"You were great, Usopp," Chopper cried out loudly.

"Could you all give it a rest?" Nami yelled at them in annoyance, but she couldn't hide the proud smile on her lips. She was only sorry she missed that speech the first time.

Present-day Usopp was crying as well… after landing on the Boin Archipelago and training with Master Heracles, he swore to become stronger. This way that he wouldn't have to rely on Luffy for everything and that he could support his Captain for once… he always wished that he could become stronger… and he had, but he hoped that he would never have to let go of this part of himself.

The Black Cat Pirates were all laughing at Usopp's vow, but that ticked Luffy off. Grabbing a boulder he threw it at them. "What's so funny?" he demanded, standing on top of it and glaring down at them all with a wild look in his eyes that made them all shut up at once.

"Thanks Luffy," Usopp sniffled a little.

"Luffy!" Zoro called to him, having picked Usopp up and was carrying him on a shoulder, "Me and Usopp are gonna chase down that Hypno freak. Is that a problem?"

"No," Luffy called, his back to them, "Hurry!"

As the two of them went up the hill, Kuro hissed as they passed, demanding to know who gave them permission to go anywhere.

"Since when do they need anyone's permission to do anything?" Nami smiled, knowing that they were going to do whatever they wanted anyway.

"I did!" Luffy called, launching an attack to make Kuro dodge it as he ordered Zoro and Usopp to get going. Kuro tried to slash him, but Luffy managed to evade it and even counter it with a Gum Gum spear, but Kuro disappeared using his PussyFoot technique. By the time that Luffy was standing upright again, the two had already taken off.

Kuro reappeared and suddenly demanded, "Before I kill you, I feel compelled to ask… what is an outsider like you butting into this village's business for?"

Luffy smirked. "Because there's a man in this village I don't wanna let die."

Usopp blinked at that. "Does he mean… me?"

"Who else would he mean?" Zoro asked him with a teasing smile. "He was fighting to help you that whole time idiot."

Usopp's lip quivered at the thought as Kuro laughed, asking if Luffy was alright with that for being the reason he died.

"Sure am," Luffy answered confidently, "But I'm not gonna die!"

"This I've been looking forward to seeing," Sanji said at once, glad to see that someone will finally be putting Kuro in his place.

The battle continued. Luffy stretched his arms to hold Kuro and then tried to give him a foot kick. Kuro dodged it by sending him crashing into the ground. Luffy then tried to use a combination of Gum Gum whip and Gum Gum Pistol at him, but Kuro dodged both moves—resulting in actually standing on Luffy's outstretched arm and proclaiming that the fight was boring him.

"Come on Captain!" Chopper cried out as Kuro ran up the arm and kicked Luffy to the ground again.

"Yeah, you don't want to lose to a loser like him do you?" Sanji added as the Black Cat Pirates tried to cheer their own Captain on, but Kuro angrily shouted at them to never call him by that name again and that he had planned on killing off 'Captain Kuro from the start.

"What's he talking about?" Brook asked bewildered. But Kuro was more than happy to explain how tired he was of devising plans for a band of men who cared only about mayhem and how sick he was to be relentlessly pursued by bounty hunters and government dogs. How he was sick and tired of that life…

"But that's what a pirate's life is all about," Nami sighed, "He didn't honestly think that it was going to be easy when he became one did he?"

"I think that he just didn't know what he signed up for," Robin answered.

Kuro finished by telling Luffy when his plan succeeds today, his goal will be fully achieved and that money and peace of mind will be his.

"Do you understand now boy?" he demanded, "I will not allow this perfect plan, years in the making, to fail!" he held his claws out and runs forward to attack, "MY PLAN WILL NOT BE DISRUPTED BY AN URCHIN LIKE YOU!"

"Who's he calling urchin?" Usopp asked hotly.

"LUFFY!" Chopper cried out anxiously, but Luffy had already stretched his arms behind him and grabbed the boulder that he used to threaten the Black Cats with and blocked one of Kuro's Cat Claws.

"It would seem that you can do a lot more than stretch," he said, his face twisted in surprise and annoyance.

"That's right," Luffy said, "I've been toughing myself up to be a pirate!" and by hugging the rock he was able to get a good hold of it, smashing it and breaking off the five Cat Claws at once.

"HE BROKE THEM!" Chopper screamed out.

"Five down and five to go!" Franky cheered as Robin giggled.

Holding the rock up, Luffy asked, "You know what? If you don't want a reputation?" and with all the strength he had, he slammed the boulder right into Kuro's face as he screamed, "THEN DON'T BE A PIRATE!"

"Well said," Zoro said approvingly.

The Black Cat Pirates start cheering their Captain on. But when he got up, blood dripping down the side of his face, and dropped the biggest bombshell on them all. He explained that he planned on killing the Black Cat Pirates as well as Jango later. He explained that he was planning to kill the Black Cats anyway to prove his innocence and not to make the world notice that he was still alive, which greatly shocked everyone.

"What a bastard," Sanji growled, sick of feeling angry. Damn it, why doesn't Luffy hurry and beat this guy already?

"I never intended to let any of you mongrels leave this village alive," Kuro said to them all, "No one… no one who knows my true identity can be allowed to live to tell about it."

"That's sick," Zoro said softly.

"How could he treat his own friends like that?" Chopper whispered horrified.

"Because he doesn't see them as friends," Robin answered, "Not every crew is like ours. Kuro sees his crewmates as tools… nothing more than that."

"You… you had already planned to kill every last one of us from the very beginning!" one of the Black Cats cried out.

He chuckled darkly. "That's right," he confessed sounding more insane with every word, "Three years ago, I planned to erase Captain Kuro… and every last person who ever knew him. It's all part of my plan."

"You guys are dumb," Luffy said, looking at the pirates with disappointment—like how he got a birthday present that he didn't want. "The most uncool pirates I know." He added looking back to Kuro.

"We're _uncool_ huh?" Kuro asked aggravated, "Pirates are nothing more than savages; incapable of rising above their animal nature. Without my plans what could they possibly accomplish? A crew is nothing to me. They are simply a means to an end. Crew members are just pawns in the Captain's game."

"That's not true is it?" Chopper asked fearfully.

"Of course not," Nami said at once.

"Kuro's only using that as an excuse to do whatever he wanted," Sanji said, "While it is a crew's duty to obey their Captain, it's also the Captain's duty to be the leader and to take care of the crew as well."

"Whether my men live or die is up to me and me alone," Kuro continued, "If I tell them to fight, they will fight. And if I order them to die they had better do it. They know the punishment for disobedience."

He grinned at Luffy who continued to give him that empty look. Zoro looked over at his Captain's eyes as well and could see it… he was looking at Kuro like how Ace looked at the nobles in Goa. Disgust, anger, and pity… but also without a trace of clemency… even if Kuro begged for forgiveness, Luffy would never forget this.

Kuro must've sensed this as well because his face suddenly turned into fury and outraged as he bellowed out, "THIS IS HOW PIRATES ARE! DON'T YOU DARE TALK DOWN TO ME BOY!"

"But Luffy didn't even say a word," Usopp said.

"He didn't need to," Robin answered, recognizing that look as well.

"Just looking at him like a lowlife was enough to get the message across," Sanji agreed.

But suddenly Luffy smiled. "You know no matter how many hundreds or thousands of men follow you as their Captain," he said, still with that same smile, "You will never be as good as Usopp."

Usopp stared at him as the Black Cats became lost to what he meant.

"You fool," Kuro snarled, sounding more like a wild animal with every second, "Are you saying that I'm inferior to a kid _pretending_ to be a pirate?!"

"That's right," Luffy agreed without a shred of doubt in his voice.

"Thanks… Captain," Usopp whispered again, those words meant more to him than anything.

Kuro threw his head back and laughed. "Well aren't YOU funny?" he demanded, "Don't get cocky just because you snapped off one of my cat claws! How exactly is he better than me?" he demanded as he stepped into his PussyFoot maneuver. "Let's hear it."

Still smiling, Luffy confessed, "Cause he's got heart. A guy like you," he said stretching his arm out, "Doesn't know what a _true_ pirate is!" and like a whip, he swung around and found Kuro, smashing him into the side of the cliff.

The Black Cats were amazed that he could keep up with that technique as Usopp fell to his knees. Even before he joined, Luffy was fighting for his honor.

"You deserve it you know," Nami told him kindly, "Because it's true."

"I appreciate it," Usopp said in a choked up voice.

"How insulting," Kuro's voice said as the smoke cleared. "It would appear that you need a lesson in what true pirates are like."

Slicking his messed up hair back, he calmed that the first lesson he would teach Luffy about pirates would be about terror. That was when he did something strange… he began to slouch back and forth and back and forth…

"What's he doing?" Chopper asked. But the Black Cats were terrified, begging Kuro not to use 'that' technique. The Out-Of-The-Bag attack…

"What's that?" Usopp asked in confusion as Nami gasped.

"I remember that," she whispered, sweat pouring down her face.

"What's the big deal?" Luffy asked them in confusion, not getting why they would be freaking out, "He's just wobbling back and forth…?"

But they continued to scream and beg for him to spare them. Luffy didn't move until a slight wind blew his bangs and he blinked in surprise. That was when Kuro disappeared, leaving nothing but dark purple whips of smoke, drifting across the land forebodingly.

"Where is he?!" Brook cried, staring around him.

"I can barely keep up with him," Zoro said, using Haki… like before he couldn't really use it like he could with a real person, but here he could at least get an idea to what was happening.

"Strange… his moments are so random," Sanji agreed before he began drooling over the sight of seeing Nami coming out of the ship with a small bag of treasure. Not that that lasted long… for suddenly, one of the pirates was slashed to pieces.

Luffy gasped. "What's he doing over there?"

"You mean Kuro did that?" Brook gasped, "But I didn't even see anything!"

"He was just slashed…?" Chopper gasped, running over to get a look at the man. "This is bad!" he gasped, "He's really trying to kill them!"

But suddenly more men fell… blood was splattered everywhere, Kuro's claw marks slashing everything… killing everywhere. One of the men begged him to stop but another one yelled, that he couldn't be reasoned with—that this maneuver was so fast that not even he knew what he was attacking.

"I get it," Robin called out, "While he uses super-human speed, he can't tell what he's really hitting. Though the fact he can move so fast at his level it is still impressive, as well as the fact that he does not really care about anyone around him and feels no remorse for killing his crewmates, counteracting this weakness."

"In other words he doesn't care who he's attacking, they're all the same to him," Nami summed up.

"This heartless bastard doesn't deserve to live!" Franky declared as the Black Cats were all screaming in pain and terror, trying to run only to be killed.

"I just didn't understand what was going on," Nami whispered as she looked to see the horror-struck expression on her past self's face.

"How could any Captain do this?" Chopper croaked out, feeling cold as he watched the men all be slaughtered before his eyes and be unable to do anything about it.

"Because he's not a real Captain," Usopp said, shaking from head to foot. "No real Captain would do something like this!"

As if to prove his point, he turned back to Luffy. Luffy didn't move the whole time as he watched. He was also being slashed at… cuts appearing all over his body… but he didn't seem to notice it. His eyes were shadowed and he was shaking in rage. Even with his own blood dripping down he just stood there before he finally screamed out so loudly that the words echoed in their heads, "DON'T YOU HAVE ANY HONOR!? THOSE MEN ARE YOUR FRIENDS!"

"Oh, he's gonna get it now," Franky grinned, glad that this was almost over now. At that moment, Kuro cut Luffy across his chest but he stood his ground and somehow he was able to stretch out at one direction and grabbed hold of Kuro's jacket before he threw him to the ground.

"I found you," Luffy grunted in satisfaction.

"He found him!" Usopp yelled proudly.

"He may not be able to use Observation Haki yet, but his senses are top notch," Sanji grinned out.

Kuro quickly got back up, looking more than a little angry at being caught. "You bastard," he hissed, "You should have accepted your fate like a good boy. Now look at what you've done! Thanks to you, my little pawns are still alive… and in misery." All around the shore, Kuro's men laid on the ground, covered in their own blood and crying in pain.

"Even now he feels nothing for them," Brook said softly. He wouldn't follow this man for any amount of money out there. Kuro was just plan evil.

"It would have been better to just let them die in the attack," Kuro sneered at them all. Luffy didn't say a word as he glared at him, but there was now a deep anger burning there.

"So now what?" Kuro mocked as he got up. "You have something to say?"

"Yeah," Luffy said as he glanced at his hat on the ground a few yards away. "No matter what happens to me… I will _never_ be like you."

Brook nodded firmly.

"Not _will_," Kuro sneered, pointing his claws at Luffy's face, "Someone like you _can't_ be like me!"

"And I take great pride in that!" Usopp called. Luffy's personality was always like a little kid, in the sense that he tends to go to the extremes. He can either be extremely greedy, especially in cases of food, who his crew is, and adventure; or extraordinarily selfless, going so far as to virtually sacrifice himself to avenge or protect his friends, crew, and family. That was the side of Luffy that he admired more…

Kuro glared at Luffy when he realized that he was giving him that exact same look that angered him so deeply. With threats on him cutting Luffy up, Kuro moved back so that he was standing back up on the top of the hill again before he went to do his move again. This time Luffy ran forward, however he was too late… Kuro disappeared.

Luffy stood there, trying to sense him… and when he slashed again, Luffy moved back so that he just barely missing him.

"GO LUFFY GO!" Usopp and Chopper both cheered on as Kuro disappeared again and reappeared behind Luffy, ready to strike again.

"Aren't you tired? Bet you are after all the dancing around you've been doing," Luffy taunted him, grinning.

"You tell him," Sanji grinned evilly.

"Don't get cocky," Kuro sneered, using both palms to move his glasses up, "That was simply a warm-up. The real fight begins now. Soon I'll be feasting on your fear… complemented by the sweet wine of your agony."

"Clever," Franky muttered with sarcasm. "Just where do guys get lines like this?"

He used another Out-Of-The-Bag attack, but Luffy had grabbed him and held him tight so that the butler couldn't get away. Before Kuro could move, Luffy wrapped his limbs around Kuro's body, stopping him dead in his tracks.

"Nice try, you jerk," Luffy grinned, getting right up in his face.

"Oh, right!" Franky cheered. "He got him!"

"Try to get away from that jerk!" Nami cheered, knowing that this was finally it.

"DAMN YOU GET AWAY FROM ME!" Kuro yelled as he attempted to break himself free. Luffy, however, was far stronger than he was and didn't let go.

"Wow butler man, your life really sucks now doesn't it?" Luffy asked conversationally, as if asking him what his favorite color was. "Your plan of three years is a complete and total failure."

"Couldn't have said it better myself!" Usopp said, grinning from ear to ear. "Now beat him for Kaya, Luffy!"

"LET GO!" Kuro screamed out as the Black Cat Pirates started cheering Luffy on.

"Wow, they sure changed their tunes quick didn't they?" Brook said as if being insulted.

"Well, Kuro was planning on killing them all," Robin reminded him.

"JUST SHUT UP!" Luffy yelled, looking annoyed as he head-butted Kuro and then threw his head back so that it stretched far enough for him to yell right up in their faces, "YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO CHEER ME ON!"

"Yeah, it's their fault they're there in the first place," Zoro agreed.

They all felt the excitement rise as they saw the look in Luffy's eyes. It was the same one that he wore just before he sent Buggy flying. Stretching his head back, "Gum Gum…!" he screamed.

"YOU INSECT! MY PLAN WILL ABSOLUTELY NOT BE DISRUPTED!" Kuro shouted just before Luffy head-butted him, finishing the attack, "BELL!"

Shattering the remains of Kuro's glasses, the bong truly did sound like a deep bell ringing before Luffy let go and gracefully landed on the ground just as the butler did… he was out cold before his shattered glasses hit the ground. Kuro laid there, bleeding from the head, his eyes rolled all the way back so they could only see white.

"He's gonna have one nasty headache when he wakes up," Sanji smirked. "Got 'em…"

"That crazy rubber guy beat Captain Kuro!" one of the pirates exclaimed in hushed amazement.

"Even the marines were a match for Kuro man of a thousand Plans!" another pirate yelled in disbelief. "And this guy still beat him!"

"Which isn't saying much," Robin said as the pirates wanted to know who he was.

Luffy calmly turned around to address them. "I'm Monkey D. Luffy. The only time a pirate should abandon his name is when he dies."

"True," Brook nodded firmly. Luffy said it best… if you don't want a reputation, then don't be a pirate.

"I would never lose to a coward who ditches his name, betrays his crew, and runs from his life on the sea," Luffy said firmly.

"You tell 'em," Chopper said proudly.

The Black Cat Pirates looked at one another. "Luffy? Never heard that name before."

"But you will soon enough," Usopp said firmly.

"You should remember my name for the rest of your lives," Luffy said before he grinned. "Cause one of these days, I'm gonna be King of the Pirates."

The pirates stared at him just as Luffy picked Kuro up by his collar and threw him down to them all. "NOW GET OUT OF HERE!" he roared as Kuro landed at their feet. "AND NEVER EVER COME BACK!"

"Or else you'll have hell to pay," Usopp shouted with him, almost believing that they could hear him too. The pirates didn't have to be told twice as they ran back to their ship in a mad panic, dragging Kuro with them.

"Wait, why'd they take him?" Chopper asked in confusion, "After he was trying to kill them a minute ago?"

"Well, Luffy was going to make sure that he left with them one way or another," Nami pointed out.

"Besides, a crew needs a Captain," Zoro added, "Without one, they're completely lost. Even if their Kuro wasn't a real Captain, they wouldn't have lasted long otherwise."

"But what about that Jango fellow?" Brook asked.

"Looks like he got left behind," Sanji said, and he quickly recalled their experience leaving Alabasta as past Nami jumped from the ship before the Black Cats. She was lugging a bag of treasure with her as she ran up to Luffy.

Before she could say anything to him, Luffy almost ended up collapsing in exhaustion but Nami was able to help support him and keep him standing.

"You did good, Luffy," she said softly as they watched the pirates climb onboard and leave… hopefully never to return. "I expect even you to collapse after what you just went through."

Luffy didn't say a word as he laid back on the ground, staring up at the sky with a dark look in his eyes… as if trying to figure out a difficult question.

Nami gently sat next to him. "Say… tell me. Why were you so made earlier?"

Luffy's eyes looked at her as he said, almost angrily, "Cause I truly hate people like them. They're so wrong." He fell silent for a moment before he added, "Crewmates aren't meant to be treated that way."

"He's right…" Chopper said firmly.

"That's what happens when you choose such garbage to follow," Sanji told him.

Memory Nami carefully picked up Luffy's hat. "What are you talking about? Of course it isn't. Most pirates aren't the brave, honorable people you make them out to be. I'd say that Captain Kuro is pretty standard."

"Sad as it is to say, that is true," Robin answered, "Especially outside the Grand Line."

"Why is that?" Usopp asked.

"In the Grand Line in order to survive, you have to be able to trust your crew completely," she answered with a smile, "But out here, the weather is normal and easy to predict. You can replace your crew at pretty much any port."

Luffy glanced at Nami before he looked at the sky again… and then he completely ruined the moment by said, "I want some meat."

Nami slammed Luffy's hat into his face, "You unbelievable!"

"After all that all he could think about was feeding his gut," Nami sighed. "I just didn't know what I was going to do with him."

"I didn't know that he was going to kill his own men while he was at it, but I can't say that I'm surprised," Usopp said softly.

It was a relief to see that Zoro and Usopp both come back, with Usopp walking again but limping heavily, letting them know that Kaya and the boys were ok.

"Thank goodness," Chopper sighed in relief.

"Thanks guys," past Usopp told them all, "I wouldn't have been able to protect the village without you."

"I think that's the first time I've heard such humility in you, Usopp-san," Brook said softly.

Past Zoro looked up, "Give credit where credit is due. If you had just stood back and done nothing, I wouldn't have done anything either."

"Yeah, same here," Luffy chirped up.

"Who cares about any of that?" memory Nami asked happily, hugging the bag of loot to her, "I've got my hands on this sweet, sweet treasure now and I couldn't be happier!"

"And that is all that matters to me, Nami-swan," Sanji swooned to her loudly.

Usopp laughed before he looked to the sea with a serious expression on his face, "Everything that happened here today helped me. I've just come to a very difficult decision."

And like that, the darkness returned and they were back in the forest.

"So what happened?" Robin asked in mild surprise.

"Yeah, what did you decide to do?" Chopper asked curiously as Usopp folded his arms.

"For a long time I wondered whether or not I should go out to sea and be a pirate or stay in the village," Usopp confessed. "I loved the village and everyone in it and it wasn't easy to leave. But I still wanted to go out to sea. It wasn't until I met you three did I really becoming inspired to set out on my own…"

"Well, not completely on your own," Nami smirked. "We all rested in the village for a couple more days before we were ready to leave. And we were going to after we got one last meal at the restaurant…"

Usopp smiled as he thought about the Usopp Pirates and wondered how close they were getting to their dreams. When the new memory appeared, the Straw Hats were standing in the restaurant that Usopp had taken them to earlier. Luffy, Zoro, and Nami were sitting peacefully at the table, just finishing their meal.

"Now that we've eaten," Zoro said comfortably. "We should probably get going."

"Yeah, your right," Luffy said as he chewed on a fish bone.

"Again, he has no manners," Sanji sighed despairingly. At that moment, Kaya came walking into the restaurant.

"Wow, she looks much better!" Brook said happily.

"Yeah, by the time we left, she was already up and healthier," Usopp said smiling.

"Here you are," Kaya said in a sweet voice.

"Hello there, miss," Luffy greeted as Nami asked if it was alright for her to be up and out of bed already.

"Yes," Kaya answered as she approached the table. "I think now I can truly start recovering. You see my sickness this last year was caused to the mental shock of losing both of my parents. And Usopp's friendship helped me start getting better. I can't stay in bed forever you know."

Usopp grinned wider, glad to hear that. She paused for a moment. "You've all done so much for me and I can't thank you enough." She beamed at them and said, "I have prepared a present for you from the bottom of my heart to show how grateful I am for everything you've done here. I'd be honored if you accept it."

"This is it!" Nami said happily, knowing that they couldn't have asked for a better present.

"What was it?" Franky asked interested. But instead of answering, they followed Kaya out the door and down the road to the same place where they fought the Black Cat Pirates. Greeting them was a tall, formally dressed butler who looked a bit like a lamb. His hair was curly like a lamb's fleece and even two lamb horns sticking out of it.

"Who's that?" Robin asked.

"That's another butler named Merry," Usopp said as they led them to the coast to where their present was waiting.

"Merry?" Chopper repeated in amazement before his eyes widen. Did this mean…?

But he got his answer as soon as he realized what Kaya's present was. A small caravel was sitting there waiting for them, about half the size of the Sunny and carried a sheep figurehead. Brook couldn't understand why some members of the crew were crying at the sight of it.

"What is it?" he asked confused.

"It's…" Usopp croaked out, tears falling down his face, "It's MERRY!"

"I thought that man's name was Merry?" he asked in confusion.

"The ship," Nami answered, wiping away a stray tear, "The Going Merry. It was our first ship and it carried us all the way from here to Water 7. After we got there, Merry couldn't sail anymore so we got the Sunny…"

Brook stared at the ship, this was the first time that he had seen it, but there was something strange about it… like it was home.

The three memory selves gasped happily. "A real caravel!" past Nami gasped.

"Are you actually giving this to us?" Luffy cried out to them.

"As a token of my appreciation," Kaya answered happily.

"Now _that's_ how you thank someone," Sanji said beaming, "Buy them a ship."

"Well, we needed her alright," Nami smiled staring happily at the boat.

"It's a slightly older model but I personally designed it and she sails like a dream," Merry explained with a hint of pride in his tone.

"Really?" Franky asked with a laugh. "Not bad… he might've made a good shipwright if he didn't become a butler."

Merry talked about some of her features and told them her name, "She's a fine ship and her name is… The Going Merry!"

As they talked the whole crew happily thought of the their own memories of the Merry. Brook was feeling almost jealous that he never had a chance to meet such a ship. At that moment, screams could be heard coming down one of the hills. The Straw Hats looked to see Usopp rolling down the hill with a backpack the size of a large boulder strapped to his back.

"What happened to you?" Robin asked interested.

"I finished packing, but had trouble stopping," Usopp confessed in embarrassment.

"What made you think you could drag that heavy thing?" Sanji asked to himself.

"Oh no it's Usopp!" Kaya cried in worry when she saw him rolling towards them.

"Hey, what's he doing?" Luffy asked in confusion, "Looks fun."

"He would," Usopp sighed, "But believe me, it was anything but fun!"

"Well we better stop him," past Zoro said in a bored tone. "That weirdo is on a collision course with our boat."

"Who you calling weirdo?" Usopp demanded.

"Who do you think?" he asked back. Both Luffy and Zoro stuck their feet out and stopped Usopp by when Usopp went slamming into them.

"Ow, hey thanks guys," Usopp muttered sarcastically. With friends like that, who needs enemies?

"Anytime," Luffy said.

"I should kill you both for that," Usopp said bitterly. But once free of his overlarge backpack, Luffy and others boarded the Going Merry while Usopp said his goodbyes to Kaya. How he promised that he would come back someday and tell her stories about his adventures at sea and she said she looked forward to it.

When he was done, he turned towards Going Merry.

"You guys, take care!" he yelled. "I hope we meet again sometime!"

"How could you think otherwise?" Nami asked him smiling, nudging him in the shoulder. "After everything we went through?"

Usopp laughed a little, "I didn't think that you guys needed a guy like me. I never thought that you'd want me to join."

"How come?" Luffy asked in confusion.

"Huh…?" past Usopp asked in disbelief. "Well because… are you anti-social or something? I'm taking off for live on the high seas and I hope we'll eventually meet again that's all!"

"What are you talking about? Get on already," past Zoro said in annoyance as he pointed down at the ship. Usopp blinked in confusion until Luffy explained.

"We're friends right?" Luffy said, almost uninterested. "So get on."

Usopp stood there, unable to believe his eyes as he stared and then he jumped up, punching the air and cried out, "I'm really a pirate Captain now!"

"Don't be stupid Usopp, I'm the Captain!" Luffy yelled angrily but everyone was laughing as Usopp jumped on-board with them all and heaving all his stuff up with him.

"If they invited you, what made you think that you were Captain?" Sanji asked him curiously.

"What? I can hope can't I?" Usopp asked, "Though thinking about it now… I see that I don't think I'm cut out to be a Captain."

"You have a lot of qualities that a good Captain needs though, Usopp-san," Brook told him.

"Yeah, well its easy just being a crewmember," Usopp said as he watched Luffy. But he learned the hard way that being Captain isn't nearly as easy he once thought it was. Being the leader of a bunch of kids was one thing… a pirate Captain fighting to get to the top was another…

The Straw Hats all jumped on board with the other four crewmembers and watched as Kaya and Merry waved them off, even glancing up to see the three boys were up on the cliff and watching them all set out. But Usopp was tearing up as he looked up at the mast of their beloved ship… he couldn't believe that they were able to ride Merry again after all this time… he gazed back at the shore.

His life as a pirate may not have started off like he planned… but in the end, his one lie did become the truth. Pirates did come to shore… and he set out with friends out to sea.

After getting some drinks from below they were all toasting up on deck. "Cheers! To a new ship and a new crewmate!" Luffy declared and they toasted all of them laughing and enjoying themselves.

Usopp smiled wider. Fighting the Black Cat Pirates had been worth it to end up here. After all… they had been fighting to live… not to die…

**(What do you think? I got a little carried away with the details I think, but I think that it turned out well. I put in all the parts I thought were important, as well as the parts I liked best. So please tell me what you think. Hopefully the next chapter won't be this long.)**


	16. Enter Black Leg Sanji

**Chapter 16: Enter Black Leg Sanji**

Back in the forest, the Straw Hats were staring around them in idle wonder.

"That really was amazing of you Usopp-san," Brook said sincerely, once everything they had seen finally sunk in. "How you were still willing to fight after everything that happened to you? Luffy-san was right… you have heart."

Usopp beamed proudly. "What did you expect?" he asked, jerking this thumb at his chest. "Of course the brave warrior of the sea, Master Usopp, stood calm in the face of danger!"

"Really, you looked scared out of you mind to me," Franky teased and Usopp's ego seemed to deflate right before their eyes.

"I think it was sweet," Robin smiled happily. "You did all that for Kaya…"

"Yeah bro, you sure there's nothing between you two?" Franky asked, poking fun at him.

"IT'S NOTHING LIKE THAT!" Usopp yelled at them.

"I agree," Sanji said, fighting back the surge of jealously inside him at the thought of Usopp managing to get such a beautiful lady.

"What's next?" Chopper asked excitedly as he glanced around, wondering when the next memory would be coming back and what they were to see next.

Nami on the other hand was trying to figure out where they were. "Where are we anyway?" she asked, "How far are we?"

"Looks like we made it even farther into the forest," Zoro answered, glancing around at the trees, "And so far we having found a race of a monster…"

"This is getting frustrating," Sanji said in annoyance. "Why doesn't it just hurry up and come out so that we don't have to go through all this? It's driving me crazy… I don't know about you guys, but I'm tired of this."

"I think we all are," Robin added, also starting to grow weary of this constant emotional rollercoaster ride before she looked to Sanji and Zoro and asked, "Can you sense anything?"

Sanji shook his head. "Other than us…? Not really."

"Same here," Zoro agreed, now trying to stretch his senses out across the land. Other than the eight of them there, he couldn't tell if there was anyone else on the island… but…

"But there's something not right," Sanji added almost nervously as he puffed on another cigarette.

"What'd you mean?" Franky asked.

"What he means is that it feels like we're being watched," Zoro said coldly, his one eye narrowed and glancing around at everything. There was something wrong with this island… there was something here that he didn't like. For the first time he could really believe that there was something here that really shouldn't be. He couldn't explain how he knew, but the creature they were hunting still hadn't taken on a form yet… but it wasn't going to be that way for long.

He was sure that the cook could sense it as well… that dark, foreboding feeling growing stronger with every memory they see. Like a whisper in their guts telling them that an enemy was nearby.

Just what was this thing?

But all too soon, the next memory appeared so that the sun was back out and they were standing on Merry's deck once again.

"YEA! IT'S MERRY! I love Merry so much!" Chopper cried out joyfully, jumping up and down as he ran to look at every part of the ship. Almost crying openly—it was like seeing an old friend you never thought you'd see again.

"It's almost like a dream come true," Nami added softly, a sad smile on her face as well, running her hand along the side of the ship, only for it to pass right through it.

"I can tell you all loved this ship," Brook said softly, watching them all.

"I only had a chance to sail on her once, but she was the most amazing ship I've ever seen," Franky said, folding his arms. "Aside from the Sunny that is…"

"This ship was like family to us," Usopp sniffled as he watched the sails catch the wind… this memory was before they got their pirate mark for the sail and flags were bare… somehow it just didn't look right.

"It's what Merry looked right brand new," Nami laughed a little through her tears, "I almost don't recognize her. So many memories… lots of good times…"

Brook looked around the small ship, feeling a little jealous that he never had the chance to ride this ship… he had a feeling that this was something that would always make him different from the rest of the crew. Though this ship may not seem like much to most pirates, he could tell that the Going Merry had once been something special; judging from everyone else's reactions. Once he had gotten a good look around, he could see that the memory versions of the four were scattered throughout the deck. Zoro was sleeping in a sunny spot as Nami was sitting on a barrel and pouring over maps—most likely keeping track of their heading—while Luffy was painting something in the corner.

Just then, they heard a noise and looked to see Usopp was there, waving a pole around like an sword in a imaginary battle before realizing just how laid back the others were.

"Jeez," he said to them all, sounding a bit let down, "I really expected you guys to be a little bit more lively than this."

"Yeah, at the time I would've thought that pirates were more energetic than that," the current Usopp added as he watched them.

"Well, what did you want us to do?" Zoro asked, rolling his eye, "Start doing tricks and jumping through hoops? That would just have been a big waste of energy should something major happen."

"It can be rare to just sit back and enjoy ourselves," Nami added, "And after all, you just went out with us to the seas… from the moment you came aboard, you weren't playing pretend anymore."

Usopp blinked. He didn't think about that. Before he left his village he supposed that he had always imagined that pirates were _always_ out on adventures and fighting monsters or enemies… the idea that they could just rest and relax on deck was something he never really thought of before he joined. Looking at his past self now, he could see that he still hadn't completely moved on from that kid who was still pretending to be a pirate…

"I'm finished!" Luffy exclaimed proudly, startling both the present and past Usopp's before he turned to show the pirate flag he'd been working on. It sorta looked like their own mark… if their mark had been stomped on and melted that is.

"I didn't think that a person could draw that badly," Sanji said with a deadpanned expression. The other three memory selves seemed to agree as they stared at it with horrified expressions.

"Luffy?" past Zoro asked hesitantly, "Is that _really_ gonna be our mark?"

"I was really hoping that he was just kidding," Zoro said with a nod.

"What do you think? Nice huh?" Luffy asked back.

"Nice compared to what?" the current Usopp asked with a blank expression.

"Our mark should be scary," past Zoro said thoughtfully as he glanced over it, "it should strike fear into our enemy's hearts."

"In that case, I think that it fits the bill," Franky said shaking his head, fighting hard not to laugh. "If I saw that mark I'd probably run for it too."

"If our enemy were terrified infants then this would be perfect," past Nami said looking at it sarcastically.

"I don't know… I find it scary-looking, Yohohoho," Brook laughed cheerfully.

But past Usopp was chuckling to himself before he wagged a finger at them, as if they were naughty kids. "You guys really should've told me about this. Maybe you didn't know this about me, but I am an artist."

"Your drawings really are amazing, Usopp!" Chopper cheered as the sniper laughed proudly at that.

"Does that mean you can draw?" Luffy questioned in awe.

"When it comes to painting I'm in a league of my own," past Usopp bragged. "I've been drawing graffiti for fifty years straight!"

"Really?" Franky asked him sardonically, looking at Usopp up and down, "Now that you mention it… I can see it."

"HEY!" Usopp yelled at him, his face red.

"But seriously Usopp you were setting yourself up for a joke like that," Franky laughed.

"Yohohoho! That's almost as old as I am!" Brook laughed happily.

"I just… thought it'd sound more impressive?" Usopp offered as the memory selves were also laughing at him.

"Whoa, fifty years!" Luffy yelled in shock.

"That would mean he's an old man now!" memory Zoro exclaimed in the same sarcastic tone that Franky had.

"Which would give him five or six grandkids, and I don't see them," past Nami offered with a smirk.

"That is so cool!" Luffy exclaimed.

"Hey!" memory Usopp exclaimed as he up his hands angrily.

"If you're gonna tell lies at least make them sound more believable Usopp," Zoro offered as their Usopp nodded firmly.

"Yeah… that's not one of my better lies…?" he said embarrassed.

"But hey, it's always fun to watch you guys tease Usopp," Franky added with a laugh.

"Why do you all wanna pick on me?!" Usopp cried out as his past self took Luffy's flag and was now painting over it.

"So I'm guessing that all this took place after you left Syrup Village?" Robin asked them all, changing the subject.

"Yeah, just the next day in fact," Nami answered, thinking back, "Once Usopp and me fully recovered from the fight with Kuro and his men." She jerked her thumb at Zoro, "But this guy and Luffy were both up and ready to go even before we set sail."

"So if it was the five of you who came to the Grand Line," Brook said, thinking it all over, "Then you all must meet up with Sanji-san after this moment."

Sanji perked up at hearing his name. "Oh yes!" he cried as he spun around dramatically. "My scene is coming up! Soon we'll meet up with the one we've all been waiting for!"

"Don't know what you're so eager to see," Zoro said, rolling his eye again, "No one wanted to see you, Mr. Nosebleed."

It was amazing how these two could wipe each other's smirks right off their faces and leave them feeling angry and aching to break something. Sanji's eyes turned dangerous as he glared at him. "I'm gonna kill you," he snarled.

"I dare you," Zoro retorted evilly.

"Behold!" past Usopp exclaimed as he held out the Jolly Roger and brought an end to the fighting. Now getting very tired of their fights coming to an end before they really began, they glanced up to see Usopp with his paintbrush, "A priceless work of pirate art!"

He held it out proudly and the Straw Hat's all felt their eyebrows raise when they saw it. While it was better than the mess that Luffy painted, it was clearly one for made just for Usopp. It was of a skull with a long nose and Usopp's bandana; while one of the crossbones behind it had been replaced with a green slingshot.

"Really Usopp?" Robin asked in easygoing amusement and Usopp sighed. Oh great… now even Robin was teasing him.

"Looks an awful lot like you on that flag," Luffy scowled as both he and Zoro gave him a hard punch to the head, "JERK!"

"Did you not know that Luffy was captain?" Chopper asked him wondering as the past Usopp rubbed his head and gave them both a pout before he went back to painting over it again.

"Yeah… it's not exactly respectful for you to do something like that," Sanji pointed out, breathing out the smoke comfortably.

"You can't take a joke can you?" Usopp demanded of them all. But he looked away at the same time feeling a little bit of shame go through him. He knew that he was easily scared and insecure just about everything… most of his lying helped him to feel better and to deal with the situation. He never really realized just how disrespectful he was to the rest of the crew because of that.

He knew that he was still that kid who was pretending to be a pirate—if he really thought about it—he was acting almost as if he was fighting with another kid on the playground and claiming that he would be Captain in their game. Well, he learned that there was a big difference between real and pretend. He shook his head hard and tried to push those thoughts out of his mind. He would deal with it… he wasn't that person anymore… he can _do_ things now. He didn't need Luffy or the others there all the time to protect him like he used to. Luffy was his Captain and he couldn't be happier about it.

So feeling better, he watched his past self get the yellow paint and went back to work. Soon he had a new flag and spread it out for them to see… and Chopper cried out happily to see that it was _their_ symbol.

"So how do you like this one?" memory Usopp said proudly.

"Wow, that's actually pretty good, Usopp," past Nami said, deeply impressed.

"Yeah, keep it," Luffy said happily, "That's the one."

"So you were the one who did the first mark," Robin said interested.

"That's right," Usopp told her proudly.

"So, we finally settled on it, this is gonna be our mark?" past Zoro asked them.

"Sure is," Luffy said before he pointed up at the sails, "Hey Usopp, draw one on the sail too!"

"I may not be a monster like all of you, but hey, I'm the best artist here!" Usopp said smugly.

"Can you teach me to draw like that, Usopp?" Chopper asked eagerly.

"Might be kinda hard for you Chopper since you have those hooves," Nami pointed out and he looked a little disappointed.

"Don't worry!" Usopp declared dramatically, "I'll have you painting like a champ in no time flat!"

"REALLY!?" he asked thrilled, his eyes shining.

"As soon as we get Luffy back and get back to the Sunny," Usopp promised as his past self took the paint and climbed up the mast like a monkey to reach the sail. They all sat back and watched him work; painting the familiar smiling skull with the straw hat on… soon it was done and Usopp was laying on the deck, covered in paint, and looking exhausted.

"Okay, it's all done!" Luffy cheered with his eyes bright and shining as he stared at the mark—it was official—they were a real pirate crew now. "Now, the Going Merry has everything she could possibly need."

"She just didn't look right without it," Nami said proudly, seeing that mark there.

"And that's how we got our mark!" Chopper said happily.

"Truly an honor to see!" Brook said proudly, just as the wind picked up and there were dark clouds looming in the distance.

"I remember this," Nami said, but to her disappointment, the memory faded and they were now on the edge of the forest and they could just make out the trace of the ocean in the distance. "That's a shame," Nami sighed, looking around. "I was hoping to see that."

"What was it?" Franky asked, "Was it important?"

"Not really I guess," she sighed, "But that really was our first adventure with the Merry… when we went to the Island of Rare Animals."

"Oh, right," Zoro said suddenly, "And that guy in the treasure chest was there."

"Treasure chest?" Robin asked curiously.

"The Island of Rare Animals is an island that had some of the strangest animals on it, most of which are mixtures of two or more normal animals," Nami explained with a laugh. "That's where we met Gaimon. He was the only human living on the island, and he had been for about twenty years."

"Twenty years?!" Brook said loudly, remembering the painful fifty years of isolation in the dark fog, "That's a long time to be alone."

"Not really," Usopp explained, "He wasn't alone. He had all the animals there to keep him company."

"But why was he in a treasure chest?" Chopper asked confused.

"Apparently he fell from a cliff and into an open treasure chest," Nami said with an amused shrug, "But he got stuck in it and he's been like that ever since. When we went there, hoping to find some treasure, we met him and helped him out with something before we left… I wonder how he's doing."

"Sounds like a pleasant fellow," Brook said with pleasure, "You all sure have many friends."

"Yeah, I lose track of them all," Usopp said fondly as they stepped into the next memory. They were back on Merry's deck with Luffy standing behind a smoking cannon—showing that he had just fired.

"Luffy with a cannon? There's a scary thought," Sanji muttered, shaking his head.

"That was way off the mark," Luffy said, looking out at the sea with disappointment.

"Oh, I know this!" Usopp said quickly as Zoro looked over irritably, obviously having just been woken up from a nap. "Hey what's so loud down there?" he shouted.

"Cannon firing practice," Luffy answered before he frowned, biting his lower lip. "But it's not going very well."

"He still has problems with aim I see," Franky said as past Usopp went around to the other side.

"Like I said, let the expert aim the thing," he said firmly, pushing Luffy out of the way so that he could show him. Frowning a little in though and then tilting the cannon farther to the left he muttered mostly to himself, "Judging from the flying distance of that last one… this should do it…" and when he fired the cannon, you couldn't have asked for a better shot.

The rock in the distance that they were aiming at was blown to pieces.

"Awesome!" Luffy shouted, staring at what was left of the rock. "You hit that thing on the first try!"

"Of course! I'm the Sniper of the Straw Hat Pirates! What did you expect?" the current Usopp asked beaming.

"That's awesome, Usopp!" Chopper cried out in amazement.

"Truly a grand shot!" Brook added as Usopp beamed wider.

However his past self seemed taken aback by it. "Wow, I did?" he muttered as if he couldn't believe it himself before he realized what he said and quickly said, as if he knew that would happen all along, "What do you think? I'm pretty magnificent when it comes aiming, so are you impressed yet?"

"Don't know, you sounded pretty surprised to me," Zoro smirked at him.

"I never shot a cannon before alright?!" Usopp said in annoyance as Luffy was nodding eagerly.

"Yeah! You better believe it!" he said in a firm voice, "So it's all settled! You'll be our sniper!"

Memory Usopp looked surprised and asked, "Wait? I don't get to be Captain?"

"The fact that they made you change the flag wasn't enough of a clue to you?" Sanji asked teasingly.

"I know! I get it!" Usopp yelled, "You don't need to keep telling me that!"

"No, _I'm_ still the Captain!" Luffy yelled in annoyance and soon they got into an argument that only ended when Nami took them all inside and they were sitting down at the table.

"Whatever, I'll humor you for now," past Usopp told Luffy as they relaxed at the table. "But… the second you do something cowardly, I'm taking your post!"

"I can live with that," Luffy said casually.

"You sure seem to really want that post, Usopp," Franky smirked. "Should Luffy be worried?"

"No!" Usopp sighed, before walking right out through the door and back onto the deck.

"Geez, you can't take a joke can you bro?" Franky called as he followed him out with Robin to talk with him.

"I was an idiot! I get it!" Usopp said loudly. "Let's just change the subject."

"Ok, ok…" Franky said, holding up his massive hands, "We all know. We know you're not like that anymore. But you know we tease you cause we care."

"Yeah," Usopp now laughing a little at Franky's tone, "I just… it was more about me and my self-esteem than actually _wanting_ to be Captain. I mean, I guess I never thought about… about what it really meant to be leader."

"Yes, I suppose that it's easy for us to play Captain in a safe village," Robin said smiling gently, "But the Captain is the one who must make all the major decisions and be ready to fight to protect the rest of the crew at any moment. While you do have many traits of a good Captain Usopp, I don't think you're quite ready for that stage just yet."

He nodded in agreement with her and she added, "Now that that's settled, we don't need to bring it up again."

"Thanks," he said to her gratefully as, all of a sudden, a rope hooked itself to the side of the ship and someone was climbing up.

Seeing the rope, Franky called to the ones inside the cabin, "Hey guys! Someone else is here now!"

"Don't worry," Usopp said watching, remembering who it was. A young man heaved himself up and onto the deck. He had black hair with somewhat tanned skin and a pair of sunglasses; his eyebrows were pointing down to make a scowl… but the most noticeable thing about him was that he had a large black tattoo on the side of his face that read out: _sea_.

"It's Johnny!" Usopp said loudly as the rest of the Straw Hats came out to join him.

"Who?" Brook asked as the man went looking around, glaring up at the skull on the sail and pulled out a sword.

"I remember him," Sanji said thinking back, "Wasn't he an old friend of yours Moss-Head?"

"Yeah," Zoro answered as Johnny shattered one of the barrels on deck.

"Get out here you damn pirates!" he yelled out.

"What's his problem?" Franky asked as Luffy rushed to the door to see what was going up.

"Hey what the hell!?" Luffy demanded, "Who are you?"

"Shut up!" Johnny yelled up at him. "Who I am means nothing ya stinking pirate!"

Johnny ran forward with his sword to try and slice Luffy in two, but Luffy easily jumped out of harm's way… however Johnny it ended up cutting up part of the upper railing.

"I knew you were hard on the old girl, but you only got her a few days ago and she's already taking a beating!" Franky said angrily.

"Don't worry, once we came to an understanding, they fixed it up good as new," Zoro defended at once as Johnny kept going on.

"Over the years I've lost count of all the pirate heads we've taken!" he proclaimed, "Now you think you guys can kill my partner?"

"What's he talking about?" Chopper asked, staring around. "You guys didn't do anything!"

"Not knowingly," Nami sighed as Johnny tried to hit Luffy again, and breaking up a few of the floorboards with his next attack.

"What do you mean by partner?" Luffy asked, now losing his temper, "Look I don't know what this is! Just stop wrecking our ship!" And without another word, he grabbed him and threw him over his head as easily as if he were a rag doll and he slammed into the side of the cabin. He hung there comically for a few seconds before he slid to the floor, muttering to himself, "Lost by a hair…"

"Ah, I think… it was more than a hair," Sanji said as the whole crew sweatdropped. "That wasn't even a contest."

"I'm guessing that he only went after the small pirates?" Brook asked, though he sounded a little doubtful.

"They're not really bad guys," Zoro said knowingly, folding his arms, "But they do tend to get carried away with their emotions."

"Who is this guy?" Luffy asked looking at him just as Zoro walked out of the cabin to see what the commotion was all about for himself.

He looked down to see who it was and said in surprise, "Johnny… tell me it isn't you?"

"Huh? Who's saying my name like they think they know me or something?" Johnny demanded, looking up with an angry glare before he realized who it was. With a gasp, he rolled over to get a better look at him and gasped, "Big Bro Zoro!"

"Big Bro?" Franky said, suddenly feeling a little homesick as he thought about the Franky Family, "Now that takes me back."

"They call anyone they respect that," Zoro said with a shrug as his past self looked at him with a satisfied expression. "Johnny, it _is_ you," he said.

"You sure seem to be on friendly terms, Zoro," Robin said smiling at him.

"I used to travel around with him and his partner Yosaku for a little while," Zoro informed her. "It was only for a few months… and after a while we went our separate ways."

"Why?" Chopper asked him.

But Johnny was already asking, "What are you doing here, Big Bro? What are you doing on a pirate ship?! What's going on around here?"

"Hey, relax, where's Yosaku?" memory Zoro asked instead. "Isn't he with you?"

"They were best friends and I just couldn't imagine the two of them separating," Zoro stated coolly. Even now, he couldn't picture one without the other.

"What's going on?" Luffy asked in confusion as past Nami and Usopp had their noses pressed up against the window to see what was going on. "You guys know each other or something?"

Johnny was near tears as he pointed to the railings. "He's over here!"

He ran to the side of Merry and they all looked down to see him as well. A man wearing a long green coat and bright orange headgear was lying there in a small boat. He had a sickly look to his skin and seemed to be struggling for breath as the thick bandage wrapped around his chest and stomach were stained with blood.

"He doesn't look too good!" Brook said in shock as Chopper looked ready jump down and exam him himself.

"He's been sick…" Johnny stuttered with tears as Zoro looked over. Zoro put his hand on Johnny's shoulder in comfort as they had Luffy gently bring him up onto the deck.

"Is he alright Chopper-san?" Brook asked worriedly as Chopper looked over him, though it was hard to do that since he couldn't touch him.

"What is it!?" Zoro exclaimed as Johnny began to explain what had happened. "Up until a few days ago he was healthy and full of life," he informed them as he tried to control his tears. "And now…? He just keeps fainting and getting really pale! I have no clue what's causing it! His teeth have been falling out and his old wound opened up and started bleeding! He just got worse and worse I didn't know what to do!"

After hearing that Chopper looked up and said without a doubt in his mind, "There's no mistake! He's got Scurvy!"

"Scurvy?" Franky repeated, "Isn't that the disease you get when you don't get enough fruits or stuff?"

"That's about right," Chopper confirmed as he explained, "Scurvy is a disease resulting from a deficiency of vitamin C, which is required for the synthesis of collagen. As Scurvy advances, there can be open, suppurating wounds, loss of teeth, jaundice, fever, neuropathy and even death. Scurvy was at one time common among sailors at sea longer than perishable fruits and vegetables could be stored."

"He'll be alright won't he?" Brook asked.

"Yes, if they give him something with a lot of vitamin C he should be just fine if they aren't too late," Chopper said.

"Don't worry," Nami said smiling as she watched her past self come down from the upper deck and walk towards them. "He was just fine."

Johnny then explained about how he thought that it would be best to let Yosaku rest on a small island for a little while… until a cannonball came and blew up the rock and almost killed them.

"Oh, so that's what happened," Sanji said, "Well, I get now why he thought you guys were trying to kill him."

Luffy and Usopp were horrified to hear this. "We're very sorry!" they said together, bowing their heads at once.

"Sorry isn't good enough," Johnny said almost resentfully with more tears. Luffy and Usopp both turned blue in the face and looked ready to cry. "Isn't that right, partner!?" Johnny asked his friend before he asked Zoro, "Big Bro, give it to me straight. Is he going to die?"

Zoro didn't answer, but his eyes widen a little and he seemed unable to think of anything to say.

"He will die if he's not treated!" Chopper cried out, as if hoping that they could hear him, "You can easily save him!"

But past Nami had already spoken up, "You all are so dumb."

"Took the words right out of my mouth, Nami dear," Sanji swooned, "You're so beautiful even when you're insulting people!"

"Oh, shut up you idiot cook," Zoro said in annoyance as his memory self was telling Nami to watch what she said. But she ignored him as she checked Yosaku over, opening his eyes and pulling out his tongue.

"You can tell?" Chopper asked her eagerly.

"I'm not a doctor, but I do know a little first-aid," Nami said smiling, having had a lot of experience treating the injuries she got over the years of robbing pirates. "Nothing that special…"

Johnny however didn't see that as helping and he grabbed her arm to get her to stop. "STOP IT" he yelled, spraying her with spit, "Whatever you're doing to my buddy, STOP! You're mocking his death!"

Sanji stamped the ground angrily. Really, were they gonna see anybody here who had proper manners?!

"DAMN IT YOU'LL…" Johnny yelled before Nami slapped his face and pushed him away before she turned to Luffy and Usopp, who still looked horrified at the thought that Yosaku was gonna die because of them, and told them that there were some limes in storage.

"That'll work!" Chopper said, relief flooding through him at the idea. "Limes are full of vitamin C! He should be just fine!"

"Yohohoho, that is good to hear!" Brook said happily as the two got stuck in the door to the storage room and soon Nami had them dripping lime juice into Yosaku's mouth.

"He has Scurvy," Nami informed them grimly.

"Scurvy?" Johnny questioned in confusion.

"If we're not too late, he should recover in a few days," Nami explained to him and Johnny looked ready to cry with happiness.

"Really Big Sis? REALLY?" Johnny asked, just making sure that she wasn't fooling around. But it didn't seem to make any difference if he was happy or angry at someone—he just kept spitting all over her. "THANK YOU, BIG SIS!"

"Why does he seem so surprised?" Usopp asked, he seemed almost amazed that his buddy's gonna make it."

"Oh, he's just happy," Zoro said shaking his head. "These two are both emotional and it doesn't take much to get them to over-react."

Nami pushed Johnny away from her a second time and warned him not to call her that again and went on to explain all that she knew about Scurvy as Luffy and Usopp whispered words of support to Yosaku and they continued to drip the juice in… now resorting in shoving whole limes into his mouth.

"Nami my love you're incredible!" Sanji swooned, almost falling over in happiness, his eyes two hearts as he looked at her. "What would we do without you?"

Nami smiled and rubbed the back of her head. "It's nothing…"

Luffy was also impressed as he gasped out to her, his eyes wide, "You're smart! You're like… a DOCTOR!"

"Nothing compared Chopper," she said and Chopper blushed at that.

"You jerk!" he said, doing a little dance and waving his arms like they were noodles, "Saying something like that won't make me happy or anything you know!"

Nami smiled at him as her past self than began to yell at them all.

"YOU GUYS ARE MORONS!" she screamed angrily. "EVERY SAILOR SHOULD KNOW ABOUT SCURVY!"

Suddenly, with a lot of coughing up limes, Yosaku was sitting up with color flooding back into his face. Blinking in surprise he looked up at Johnny and soon the two were dancing around, singing out that he was cured.

"As you can see…" Zoro smirked, "These two were practically separated at birth."

"YOU CAN'T HEAL THAT QUICKLY!" memory Nami yelled at the two as Chopper looked panic-stricken.

"He shouldn't even be sitting up! Let alone dancing!" he cried out as the two finally stopped and turned to face them all.

"Allow us to introduce ourselves," Johnny said, "My name is Johnny."

"And I'm Yosaku," Yosaku added.

"Together we're the baddest pirate bounty hunting duo in the world!" they said together.

"These two are characters," Franky laughed. "Two more people who I'd like to party with."

"Big Bro Zoro there used to be one of us," Johnny added.

"Glad to make your acquaintance," Yosaku said smiling as Zoro joined in.

"Small world," he said coming forward towards them, "I never thought I'd see you two again."

"Well, if you think you're surprised," Yosaku said, beaming at the sight of him.

"We never thought that the Pirate Hunter Zoro became a pirate himself," Johnny spoke up, looking around at the ship.

"Did you tell them the whole story?" Robin asked, "I'm sure that they must've been curious as to how it happened."

"Even if I did, I doubt that they'd believe me," Zoro confessed as his past self held his hands out to shake theirs, only for Yosaku to go pale again and pass out where he stood.

"Hey, partner!?" Johnny exclaimed in shock.

Chopper sighed. "You can't tell me that you're all surprised! He needed at least a full night of sleep before he could even think about dancing around like that!"

After Nami reassured him the same thing, they carried him off so that he could sleep everything off, while they went back up to the lounge to talk with each other.

"Let this be a lesson to you," memory Nami said in a firm tone, pulling out her logbook and began to write down everything that happened that day.

"Yeah," past Zoro agreed, as he sat up against the wall and looked ready for a good nap. "This is the kind of trouble you get into when you chose a life on the sea."

"So you better know what you're getting yourself into before you make such a choice," Brook nodded wisely. Kuro obviously had no idea what a pirate's life meant and look at what happened to him?

"Which means," Usopp added gravely, "While we're at sea, we really gotta think about how to get the right amount of nutrients with very little food."

"That's where I come in," Sanji grinned, knowing that it was only gonna be a matter of time before they finally meet up with him.

"It's absolutely necessary that someone knows how to do that," past Nami agreed as she frowned, wondering what to do.

"It's necessary?" Luffy asked as he enjoyed some bread and then his eyes widen as he had a sudden idea, "Right! A ship needs a cook!"

Everyone looked to him and Sanji grinned wider as Luffy repeated that they needed to go find a cook.

Usopp stood up in excitement. "I'm in! Good idea! We'll have yummy food even while we're out at sea!"

"That's right! You got it!" Luffy yelled sticking out his tongue.

"Thank you! Thank you!" Sanji said bowing to them all.

"He said yummy food, not crap food," Zoro said and Sanji's good mood shriveled up on the spot as he gave Zoro a good kick in the face, yelling at him to shut up.

"You want a piece of me?!" Zoro yelled, "God, of all the people at that restaurant why'd Luffy have to pick you?!"

"Because I'm the best there is!" Sanji retorted.

"Then I'm guessing that the other cooks there couldn't even boil water?" Zoro taunted, his hand going for his swords.

"Hey now!" Usopp cried to them both, trying to get them to stop. Thankfully Johnny was smiling as he claimed to know the perfect place to find a cook. Looking excited, Luffy was practically jumping up and down to go check it out himself.

"Consider yourselves warned," Johnny added as he paced forward so that he was right in front of Zoro. "This place is close to the Grand Line and I've heard a lot of rumors lately. That a certain Hawk-Eye man you're looking for is there too."

That got Zoro's attention as he grabbed his sword and grinned almost as eagerly as Luffy did.

"Set a course! North by northeast!" Johnny exclaimed dramatically as he pointed in the direction. "Our destination is… the sea restaurant, Baratie!"

"YES!" Sanji cried out, punching the air. "Finally! Here I am!"

"The sea restaurant?" Brook asked, tilting his head at the thought, "So you lived there, Sanji-san?"

"Yep," Sanji grinned, looking happier than they'd seen him in a long time. "I spent nine years working at the Baratie… I wouldn't be who I am without her."

He beamed at the thought of seeing the old man and the other cooks again. He wondered just what they were doing right now. He hoped that the other cooks didn't burn down the restaurant while he'd been away.

"Yohohoho, then it sounds like you're returning home, Sanji-san," Brook said, wishing that he could have a glimpse of his old home in the West Blue once again.

The darkness returned and they were back out on the edge of the forest. Having hardly moved from the last memory, they didn't seem that surprised to see that. Sanji was almost impatient for the memories to come back so that he could see everything again, having to almost kick himself to remind him of the task at hand. He only hoped that the monster didn't take on Zeff's form… that would be a living nightmare to him.

After waiting for what felt like an hour the memory was back and they were still on the Merry… but what caught everyone's attention was that they were all on the upper deck with the memory selves and staring ahead. There it was…

A brightly colored ship was floating on the sea, mostly looking like a large fish with many different levels and the name Baratie spelled out in front.

"So what do you think!?" Johnny asked, all five were piled on the upper deck and Yosaku poking his head cautiously out the door to the cabin.

"Wow! That's a big fish!" Luffy yelled excitedly.

"It's lovely!" memory Nami exclaimed.

"And you've always had the finest taste Nami my love," Sanji swooned to her, but his eyes never left the restaurant.

"This is the coolest place ever!" memory Usopp yelled.

"Until you try the food," Zoro said softly, but Sanji was so happy that he didn't even hear him that time.

"Just like I told ya right?" Johnny asked beaming out. But as they neared the restaurant, there were loud bells and honking noises from behind them and everyone turned to see a large Marine ship sailing towards them.

"They always come at the worst times," Franky sighed, now what was gonna happen?

"This can't be good," Robin answered, knowing that the arrival of a Marine ship never meant a good thing. While it wasn't a battleship she didn't really understand what the point was… what were these Marines thinking? Taking on a pirate ship without weapons? Probably overconfident that a new pirate crew posed no threat to them most likely.

"What the…?" Johnny cried out, startled at the ship's sudden arrival, "A marine ship? All the way out here?"

"Hey Luffy," Usopp asked in hushed tones, "You don't think they're gonna fire on us are they?"

"Most likely," Brook said knowingly. "It's what they do best…"

"That's just my luck," memory Zoro said angrily, "Of _course_ the Marines would show up."

"That's always our luck," Usopp sighed.

"But how did that ship…?" memory Nami asked in surprise as Johnny tried to sneak below deck.

"What's he doing?" Chopper asked in surprise, as he watched him join Yosaku and hide behind the door.

"They aren't pirates," Sanji said reasonably, "They're worried that they'll be treated like pirates if they're seen."

"Understandable," Robin agreed as someone came out onto the deck on the naval ship. An average sized marine that wore a white pinstripe suit. He had hair as pink as Coby's, well combed and slicked back, with a scar under his right eye and bolts attached to his knuckles that gleamed in the sunlight as he put his hand up on the railing when he looked over at them.

"I've never seen that pirate flag," he said before calling out, holding up his fist so that they couldn't miss his knuckles. "I'm Iron Fist Fullbody! But you can just call me Sir!"

"Already, I can tell that this guy has a big ego," Franky sighed.

"Stupid name," Sanji said, remembering that punk… he suddenly wished he kicked him harder. He won't be acting so high and mighty after he got through with him… he smirked at the memory.

"You there!" Fullbody shouted, "Who is the Captain? Identify yourself!"

At the command, Luffy stepped forward, "My name is Luffy!"

Almost immediately afterwards, Usopp also came forward and called, "My name's Usopp! Got it?"

"Oh no," Usopp sighed, wishing he could knock some sense into his past self.

Luffy gave Usopp a slightly irritated look before he went out, "We've only made our pirate flag the day before yesterday!"

"That's right, Marine!" Usopp yelled smugly, "And _I_ drew it!"

If Usopp was trying to make Luffy annoyed, he was doing a really good job—Luffy looked like he was now regretting having Usopp come with them.

"You might want to stop before Luffy really loses it," Nami smiled at him.

"You know… I think that you really needed a slice of humble pie," Sanji informed him as Usopp sighed.

"Yeah," he muttered grimly. "I get it…"

"We won't bring it up again," Robin promised, giving the rest of the crew a light glance so that they got the message, "We all know better now."

Usopp nodded appreciatively to her as Fullbody began sneering at them. "You did? Is that so?" But then he suddenly noticed Johnny and Yosaku, who were half-hidden behind the door. "Hey, you two!" he called, "I've seen you before! You're that bounty hunting duo that goes after the small fish? Right?"

"What? Well, we…?" Johnny exclaimed nervously, trying to think of something to say.

"So you've finally been caught by pirates," Fullbody sneered again before laughing.

"That's not true!" Chopper said.

"It's best if he thought that," Zoro disagreed, "After all, they could've been named as accomplices and gotten into a lot of trouble because of us."

It was then that a beautiful woman in a red dress came out from behind him and cooed, "Hey, come on baby let's get going."

"Sure," Fullbody said to her.

"Oh, I get it," Robin said, her eyes to the restaurant. "He came here so that he could show off to her."

"Isn't that abusing his authority?" Brook asked.

"Everything has loopholes if you know where to look," she said with a shrug. "And as far as I can tell, there's nothing that's preventing him from going to a restaurant… unless he had someone he was supposed to be taking to prison. That should be his fist priority."

Sanji gazed at the beautiful woman before he muttered, "She can do better than him, she's way too good for him."

But Johnny and Yosaku seemed outrage that they were being insulted as Fullbody and his girlfriend turned their backs.

"Hey wait a minute!" Johnny yelled as he reached into his jacket, "You think that small time bounty hunters would go after these guys?!" and then he threw a stack of wanted posters onto the deck.

But he didn't get any reaction from Fullbody as he held a thumbs down to one of the Marines there with him, he was too far away to hear what he said to him—but they had a bad feeling about what it was about.

"He ignored us," Johnny growled.

"Next time we see him, he better have some more respect for us!" Yosaku said determinedly. Present-day Nami was sadly watching her past self spot one of the wanted posters and bent down to pick it up. "What are these things?" she asked softly, though it was clear from her tone that she knew what they were.

"Well, these are all wanted pirates Big Sis Nami," Johnny explained before he choked up when he saw the poster she had picked up.

"Arlong?" Brook read off as he looked over Nami's shoulder to get a good look at it. "Hold on…" he added, having heard that name before, "I know that name!"

"Not now Brook," Usopp whispered, casting a nervous look over his shoulder at their Nami who's eyes were overshadowed by her long hair… and it wasn't just her either, her past self was wearing that exact same expression—one of hatred and anger.

Johnny however noticed none of this as he cleared his throat and finished, "In other words, if we defeat them, we get the reward money."

"Pretty good business huh, Big Sis?" Yosaku asked as Johnny covered his mouth, and it was clear that the idea of going after Arlong was something he didn't want to talk about.

"It really is a good business if the bounties are high enough," Robin agreed grimly, having had bounty hunters after her for over twenty years and knew firsthand that getting a high bounty from someone they thought was defenseless was like a dream come true to any bounty hunter… especially if they thought it was a child.

Memory Nami didn't say anything as she crushed the wanted poster, her hands shaking.

"Nami-san," Sanji said softly to her as she shook her head.

"It's nothing," she said firmly. Thankfully, she was spared having to go on when the marine ship moved a cannon around at them.

"Hey you guys, look!" past Usopp yelled in fear, pointing wildly at the Marines, "They're pointing that cannon right at us!"

But too late, they had fired and the black cannonball was speeding towards them.

"Leave it to me!" Luffy proclaimed as he wrapped his legs against the railing tightly before stretching out to grab the mast and the bow of the ship to make a slingshot. The cannonball hit him directly in the chest and he was stretched back so that he was now dangling dangerously over the ocean.

But the force of the cannonball caused part of the sheep's head to break off so that Luffy's hand slipped. Luffy cried out, trying to think of something to do, but it was too late again. When he launched the cannonball back, the direction was completely off and headed straight for the restaurant.

"Oh, so that's what happened," Sanji said, mildly surprised as he watched the ball crash into the roof and caused the explosion—not seeing Luffy crash into the Merry's bow. "And I thought that he was just kidding…"

"You had the entire ocean around you and you ended up hitting the one and only building out here," Franky said shaking his head, his hand over his face.

"It's almost like fate made it so that Luffy would lose his grip there," Robin said in amusement.

"Did anyone get hurt?" Chopper asked anxiously as the smoke cleared to see the giant hole in the roof of the building.

"Yeah, my old boss," Sanji said, "Don't worry… it'll take a lot more than that to kill that old man off."

The Marine ship quickly headed off to the restaurant as chefs came out of the building to look around and get a good look at what was going on. As soon as they saw the pirate ship, they immediately began to yell.

"Of course the Marines take off before they could get blamed for it," Franky said in disgust.

"Why not just explain what happened?" Robin asked as the ship neared the restaurant and the chefs were all still yelling at them.

"How would we explain this?" Zoro asked her. "Marines fired on us and our rubbery Captain shot it back and missed?"

Soon, a couple chefs had grabbed hold of Luffy and were now dragging him in by the scruff of his neck and thrown into the destroyed room, and at the feet of the one who had to be the head boss.

"Who's that?" Franky asked.

"Chef Zeff," Sanji answered with a hint of respect in his tone. Though he would never admit to it, it was good to see him again after all this time. Chef Zeff was an elderly-looking man but with blonde hair and considerably long mustache and beard while sporting and extra-long chef's hat that towered over them all. But his right leg was missing… instead there was a pegged leg.

Chopper screamed. "YOU MEAN HE LOST HIS LEG IN THAT ATTACK?!"

"Relax," Sanji said as the chefs told Zeff that it was Luffy who caused it.

Luffy got down and said, "Sir, I'm very sorry!"

But when he looked up at his leg his eyes got big and he began to scream in horror.

"Idiot!" Zeff yelled before he shoved his left foot right into Luffy's face. "Don't worry," he said, slapping his knee. "You didn't do this to my leg."

"Really?" Chopper asked before sighing in relief.

"Oh, I see," Luffy said in a muffled voice, his foot still in his face, "That's good to know!"

Zeff kicked him off and then began telling him to pay for this. Luffy told him he was flat broke… but then Zeff said that he would let him go if he worked unpaid for a year. As they argued, Zeff lost his temper and attacked him so that he was slammed into the wall.

"That looked like it hurt," Franky winced at that. For an old man, he looked like he could easily break bones with that kick.

"No deal!" Luffy called out, dusting off his hat, and pulling himself out of the rubble, "I've waited ten long years to become a pirate! So I'm not gonna waste another year stuck in this restaurant. I'm gonna get you to let me off the hook in a week! That's my decision!"

"And I couldn't believe that he did," Sanji said, thinking it all over… "In fact, it wasn't even a week! I don't get how he does it."

That was when Zeff offered to cut off Luffy's leg to pay for it.

"That's pricey," Brook said with a gulp. "Talk about costing you an arm and a leg…?"

But Luffy said no again, Zeff decided to go on with a few beatings. The whole time though, Luffy just kept crying out no despite what Zeff could dish out.

"This is getting old," Zeff said, now sounding deeply exasperated as he stood over Luffy's battered and bruised body, "you're never gonna make it unless you just give in sometimes."

"I'm afraid that those are words that Luffy doesn't know," Nami said knowingly as Luffy gasped on the floor. He opened his eyes and declared, "It's still no!"

Sanji felt his respect for Luffy go up just a hair. He remembered all the beatings he got from the old man… and it still amazed him to know that he didn't die from them. It takes a lot to be able to still say no after a pounding from him.

Zeff looked annoyed. "No respect," he said… and just like that, with one more attack, he jumped on Luffy and the force was so great that they went slamming through the floor.

"He's nuts," Franky said with a sweatdrop.

"How'd you survive with him, Sanji?" Chopper asked, terrified of him.

"To be honest, I often wonder about that myself," Sanji admitted as he jumped down through the hole to see the familiar dining room. The dozens of tables scattered around in the elegant room with the stone stairs that lead to the kitchen above them.

But his attention was focused on himself… there he was. It was an unreal experience to see himself being held back by half a dozen chefs as he was fighting to get over to Fullbody. His past self was fighting to get free, his hand stretched out as if hoping that he could strangle him—and Fullbody, who was laying bloody and beaten up there on his butt looked too scared to move—tears in his eyes.

"I can breathe again!" Luffy choked out, once Zeff got off and looked up at the ceiling to see the hole he made.

"Boss Zeff, what's happening here?" one of the chefs asked in surprise, "You didn't hurt yourself did you?"

"Please, you think he'll know him better than that by now," Sanji said as the rest of the crew jumped down to join him.

"Dammit, my ceiling!?" Zeff growled realizing that there was another thing to fix, and glared at Luffy, "Another thing that has to be fixed because of you! This is all your fault, you brat!"

"How is it my fault?" Luffy yelled back furiously, "_You_ attacked _me_!"

"You know, he's right about that," Zoro smirked.

"Boss!? Can you stop messing around and give us a hand?" one of the chefs that was still holding Sanji back, yelled out in a desperate voice, "Sanji's gone crazy again!"

"Gone crazy again?" Robin asked and then looked up to see him there. "Oh, I see…"

"What happened with you?" Franky asked, laughing a little at seeing Fullbody cowering on the floor.

"Rather what happened to that guy?" Chopper asked nervously, "And how do I know what to do in the future to keep you from giving me the same beating?"

"He did the worst thing he could've done," Sanji snarled, not at all sorry for taking care of this guy. "Besides, he was the one who really caused the damage to the restaurant. Of course Karma would get him in the end."

"But what did he do here?" Robin asked, watching memory Sanji still dishing out insults as he tried to throw the other chef's off him and get to the Marine.

"Easy," Sanji said, taking out his lighter and lighting up another cigarette. "He didn't treat the food or me with respect. And he insulted all the cooks! So I simply taught him some manners."

"I see," Brook said, and they all knew that anyone who was dumb enough to waste even a scrap of food was sure to answer to Sanji about that. Zeff looked up to see Sanji and yelled out, "Hey, Sanji! Don't tell me you went on another rampage in here, you idiot?"

"I guess you attacking the clientele is normal for you?" Franky asked him.

Past Sanji stopped struggling and hollered at Zeff, "Put a cork in it, old man!"

"Oh, now you're ordering me around?! Just who do you think you're talking too!?" Zeff exclaimed. "Do you want to sink my restaurant to the bottom of the sea? You punk!" And then he walked right up and gave Sanji a good, hard kick in the face with his peg leg.

"This is one wild restaurant," Robin said, as a few members of her crew winced at that, "Dinner _and_ a show."

"Did that hurt?" Chopper asked fearfully.

"Yes, very much so," Sanji smirked.

"Just to survive here, you've gotta be tough," Nami said, this explained a lot about Sanji. She had to agree with Usopp—it looked like their sniper was the only one who had a normal-sounding childhood.

Fullbody was looking thrilled at Sanji getting a beating… at least until Zeff glared down at him. "YOU TOO!" he added, giving him a good kick in the head as well, "GET YOUR ASS OUT OF MY RESTAURANT!"

"You do know you could've gotten into a lot of trouble for doing that?" Nami asked him, as Fullbody when flying across the room and landed painfully on the floor. "Even if he was an idiot, he was still a Marine."

Sanji shrugged. "You think we care? This restaurant was a lot like a pirate ship. So in other words…"

"In other words fighting Marines comes with the job description," Robin answered in enjoyment.

"Good times," Sanji sighed as he watched them. "Like they could do anything to the old fart…"

"Is he the one who taught you to fight, Sanji-san?" Brook asked, having recognized the way that Zeff attacked.

"Yeah, that's right," Sanji admitted. "He used to sail the Grand Line as a pirate Captain himself. I really don't know much about his adventures out here though… he never liked to talk about it much."

"Why?" Chopper asked, "He sounds like he was really strong!"

Sanji shrugged. "When I finally worked up the courage once to ask him he just said that it was too many memories. He then told me to shut up and finish washing dishes."

"How can you deny our motto!?" one of the chef's yelled at the past Sanji. He was a big and muscular man with a lot of hair on his arms, a shaved head, large lips, complete with short black beard and even had two heart tattoos on his left arm. "That the customers are king!"

"That's Patty," Sanji said with a bitter laugh, as he watched them fight, "And I'll give anyone a crown who can stomach _his_ cooking."

His past self obviously felt the same way as he sneered and said, "The only kingly customers are the ones who can stomach the slop you call food."

"That's it!" Zeff yelled, looking ready to beat them both up, "If you two want to fight you can do it in the kitchen! You understand me?"

"Everyone here loves cooking and fighting, so it's home to us," Sanji laughed.

Just then a Marine from Fullbody's ship came charging in. "L… Lieutenant… Lieutenant Fullbody! We we've got trouble!"

"Wow, this restaurant is crazy," Luffy said and they all forgot that he was here, as he watched the chaos.

"Sir, he escaped! Pirate Krieg's henchman attacked us and vanished!" the Marine yelled, nursing a hurt arm.

"What!?" Fullbody exclaimed loudly and with wide eyes.

"Well, sir we've already lost seven of our own men and the only thing we wanted out of him was a lead to Krieg," he said, shaking as he explained.

"Sounds like one badass dude," Franky said, sounding impressed.

"Impossible!" Fullbody yelled. "When we picked him up three days ago he was right on the verge of starving to death and we haven't fed him anything! Where'd he get the strength?!"

Sanji's eyes narrowed at the thought. Once again, proof that Marines weren't any better than the 'pirate scum' they claim to hunt. It's one thing to attack someone… but let someone starve when they knew that they were hungry…?

All the customers, who were still recovering from the fight with Sanji and Zeff, were now looking terrified as they began to gasp to each other.

"I'm guessing that this Krieg person isn't a good thing?" Chopper asked nervously.

"Nope," Nami sighed, vaguely remembering seeing the huge galleon sailing towards them before she took the Merry and left. A part of her always wondered just what happened here. Looks like she'll finally get a chance to find out.

"I'm sorry Lieutenant…" the Marine said before the sound of a gun went off and he fell to the ground. Brook and Chopper both screamed.

"HE WAS SHOT IN THE BACK!" Chopper cried as he made to go over and check on him when someone appeared in the doorway. A very thin man came in with short, scruffy, hair and beard lumbered inside. He had dark circles under his eyes, as though he hadn't slept in days, and his gray jacket blew softly in the light breeze so that they could just see the two serpents on his back as he stumbled around, a gun in his hands.

"It would seem we have new customer, sir," Patty whispered to Zeff.

"He would do well to mind his manners and not cause any trouble on my ship," Zeff added darkly as Luffy watched him.

"Why are you guys letting him in after he shot him?!" Chopper cried out angrily as he looked at the bleeding wound in the soldier's back. He was breathing, but he needed medical attention fast.

"We're used to it," Sanji answered coolly, "We get characters like him all the time. This is us on a good day if you could believe that."

"I hate to see what you consider a 'bad' day then," Robin stated as she watched the man leering at them all.

"Damn, in order to stay around you guys would have to be tougher than them all," Usopp said nervously.

Sanji shrugged. "You get used to it."

The man then walked over and took a seat at one of the available tables before he put a foot up, ordering them to bring him food in a tired, but still grumpy voice.

"Hello and welcome, you damn crook," Patty greeted in a false cheery voice, coming up to him.

"Is that how you usually greet people?" Robin giggled.

"That's our motto," Sanji laughed.

"I'm just gonna say this one more time. Bring me something to eat and make it quick," the pirate snapped, looking at him with angry eyes, but they could see that he was still very weak.

Sanji watched him with a thoughtful expression on his face as Patty asked to know how he planned on paying for his food; which caused him to respond by pointing the gun at Patty's head, wondering if a bullet would be enough.

"That threat hardly works," Zoro sighed. Really, he couldn't work up a better threat than that?

Patty's eyes narrowed and he lost his polite attitude as he said, "So, you don't have any money then?" and reacting faster than blinking he smashed Gin's head right into the table and breaking the chair he was in right in half.

"That dumbass Patty broke another chair!" Zeff complained loudly behind them.

"Wow, what power!" Luffy exclaimed in an impressed tone.

"Please, that guy's a featherweight," Sanji said, waving his hand off.

"Sorry pirate," Patty said firmly, cracking his knuckles together as Gin lay there, "But our policy is to only serve paying customers."

"Don't know where he heard that," Sanji said darkly as he remembered Zeff once telling them that they were to serve _everyone_ who came in here. And as far as he was concerned, if they were hungry when they came to him, they were a customer. He watched as Gin was holding onto his stomach that was now rumbling loud enough for them all to hear. But it was soon drowned out as the customers cheered Patty on.

"Aww, I can hear your stomach grumbling from here, pirate," Patty asked mocked at him.

"That was a fart, jerk," Gin snarled up at him, "Now listen… get me something to eat now."

"Kinda hard to sound threatening when you're on the ground like that," Franky said as Patty lost his temper.

"WE'RE NOT GETTING YOU ANYTHING SO BEAT IT!" Patty yelled before he then went and began to beat Gin, who was so weak from hunger, he could hardly raise an arm to defend himself.

"Isn't anyone gonna stop him?!" Brook cried out, "He's attacking someone who's too weak to fight back!"

"Patty's like a wild boar, once he charges, getting him to stop is almost impossible," Sanji explained as he kept an eye out on his younger self. His eyes were blank as he watched the beatdown, but he was already rolling up his sleeves and heading straight for the kitchen. He smiled at that.

"And now, you damn crooks!" Patty shouted with a curtsy as the customers applauded him. "If you need anything just ask ok?"

"Fine for him to say since he was the one who had to help wait tables," Sanji sighed as he watched him pick up Gin and carry him to the back door.

"And please never come back!" he heard him say as Luffy got up and went out to see for himself what was gonna happen. Luffy went climbing up the stairs and they followed him so that he came out onto one of the higher balconies and looked down to see Gin laying there. They all joined him so that they could get a good look at him.

"Just who is that anyway?" Chopper asked hesitantly.

"His name is Gin," Sanji explained dully as he watched Gin began to curse himself, muttering how he would be inside eating and Patty would be out here if he wasn't so weak from hunger.

Luffy then called out, "Hey! You're not hungry by any chance are you?"

"What gave him that idea?" Zoro asked, rolling his eye.

"No… I'm not…" Gin snarled to him, but his stomach was clearly still rumbling. "Just leave me alone."

"But I thought he was…?" Chopper said in confusion.

"His pride," Robin explained to him softly, "he doesn't want to admit that he's this weak."

Chopper was frowning before the door opened and Sanji came out with a steaming plate of food and a glass of water. He set it down next to Gin before he took a seat, his back leaned against the rails and lit a cigarette. "Eat up," he told him almost as if it was a chore he was doing.

Gin's eyes were wide and he stared hungrily at the plate. But he looked away, as if it took all his willpower to do so. "Take it and leave me alone! I won't accept charity," he said stubbornly, "It doesn't matter how down and out I may be. Just take the stuff away now!"

"He can howl all he wants to, but it would've been a pathetic way to die," Sanji disagreed.

"Stop your whining and eat it already," memory Sanji said harshly. "I don't care what they say in there. To me, if anyone's hunger they're a customer."

"That's so sweet of you, Sanji," Nami said and Sanji became lovestruck again.

"Thank you Nami-swan! I'm glad to see that someone appreciates all that I do!"

"Which would be what?" Zoro asked him, "Bleeding to death whenever you see a woman?"

"Do you really want me to kill you one of these days?" he yelled, "I swear, one of these days I'm gonna finish you off once and for all!"

"Why don't you all watch the scene before you get to it?" Robin offered as Gin still kept his head turned away from the plate.

"Sorry… but I'm not your customer," he said stubbornly, but his stomach was roaring in disagreement.

Memory Sanji looked up into the sky with a thoughtful expression, almost grim, before he went on, "It's amazing how beautiful and cruel the ocean can be. How it's almost a death sentence to lose your food and water out here. How difficult it is to survive…?"

"You sound like you speak from experience, Sanji-san," Brook said softly, looking over at the cook. If he still had a face, he would've had a thoughtful expression as he gazed at Sanji.

Sanji didn't answer. He didn't want to think about those endless days on that miserable rock in the middle of the sea. He could understand now Zeff's reluctance to remember certain events from the past… he did his best not to think of his near-death experience.

"I know what it means to go hungry because of the sea more than anyone," his past self said and everyone was looking at him curiously. But he refused to look as he listened. "You can die for your pride if you want. But listen, if you eat and survive won't that give you the opportunity to fight for pride truly worth having now and in the future?"

Franky sniffled, his heart going out to Gin as he listened to those words. Gin stared out at the food before he finally took the plate and practically inhaled it into his mouth.

"I'm sorry!" Gin gasped out, and his tears were now starting to mix in with the food and he was wiping them away furiously, "I'm sorry! Thank you so much! I thought it was over! I truly thought I was gonna die!" He was quickly cleaning the plate and the tears kept falling, "This food… it's delicious! I've never eaten food this good before!"

Sanji grinned. "Of course it is."

"Well, when you're desperate enough you're willing to eat just about anything," Zoro said, but even he was feeling some grudging respect for the cook as he watched this.

"Shut up Moss-Head, at least I _can_ cook! You can't even do that!" Sanji snapped at him.

Before Zoro could give him another death threat, Luffy was chuckling to himself. "I think I just found my cook." He leaned over the rails and called to Gin with laughter, "You're lucky he gave you some food! You weren't looking so good there! I thought you were a goner!" He then turned to Sanji and said, "So listen, Mister Cook, how about you leave this boat and join my crew?!"

"He doesn't waste time does he?" Franky asked with a laugh as past Sanji looked up at him startled. "He barely knew you but wanted you to come with him."

"He knows a good cook when he sees one," Sanji said proudly.

"And that's how we got stuck with you," Zoro sighed.

"SHUT UP!" Sanji yelled.

"I could use a cook like you on my pirate ship!" Luffy exclaimed happily before he gracefully jumped down and landed like a cat on the railing.

"So, you're a pirate?" past Sanji said, looking him up and down, and it was clear that he didn't believe him. Which was true, Luffy honestly didn't look like any pirate they had seen.

"Uh-huh," Luffy said proudly.

"Is that why you went and did a crazy thing like shoot a cannonball into the restaurant?" Sanji asked as if he was asking which way the wind was blowing, not even sounding like he cared for an answer.

"That was an accident," Luffy said at once, looking up at the building, "It was self-defense that turned into a stray shot."

"A stray shot?" Sanji asked, sounding close to laughing.

"Yeah, I didn't believe a word he said," present-day Sanji admitted.

"In any case, you really don't want to do anything _stupid_ to this place. The owner used to be a cook in a famous pirate fleet," his past said.

"Oh," Luffy said, understanding coming over his face, "So the old man used to be a pirate."

"It explains a lot," Usopp said, thinking of Zeff. Past Sanji was still staring up at the sky as he explained how the restaurant meant everything to the old man and it was all he'll need for the rest of his life. As well as explaining that the other cooks that joined him were just like pirates.

"So how'd you get stuck here?" Zoro asked teasingly.

"None of your business!" Sanji snapped, but a part of him was now deeply worried about them finding out the truth about his past. Right now, Luffy was the only person on their crew who knew about what he had to go through and he was concerned about them hearing that as well.

Luffy was nodding as he happily clapped his sandals together. "Yeah, noticed that. This is a really wild restaurant."

"You get used to it," Sanji admitted as his past self sighed.

"So true," he admitted, "and this is how it is every day. It has gotten so bad that customers are coming just to watch fights between the cooks and the pirates."

"Hell, if that's the case, I'll come and see it for myself," Franky said happily, "Sounds like it be one heck of a place to see."

"It did good business," Sanji said in amusement, "Never a dull moment."

"Every day it's been a new pirate ship and a new rampage," memory Sanji sighed tiredly, "It wasn't long till all the waiters got scared and bailed."

"So that's why the chefs were forced to do the delivery themselves," Robin said thoughtfully.

"Yeah, the waiters were almost killed more than once and they just couldn't take it anymore," Sanji answered with a shrug, "Their loss."

"Ah, so that makes sense," Luffy said, thinking that over. "So, that's why the old man wants me to work for him for a year."

"And I don't think that ever would've happened," Nami said, laughing at the idea. "He's a disaster no matter what he does."

"That I can't disagree with," Sanji sighed, remembering all the damage he caused. Broken plates and dishes… eating all the food… slacking off and dropping food all over…? If he had stayed a year there wouldn't have been anything left of the restaurant.

"So, you're joining my pirate crew or what?" Luffy asked him brightly.

Sanji glanced up at him, a hint of an apology in his eyes as he said, "I'm sorry, but I can't. There's a reason why I have to work here in this restaurant, so I can't just walk away from it."

"Did you break something too and have to work it off?" Chopper asked him curiously.

"Not exactly," Sanji confessed as he yawned. "But everything I am I owed to Baratie and I just couldn't bring myself to leave." Truthfully, he had secretly planned to work at the restaurant for the rest of his life… at least until the old man died… but…?

Luffy had bent over so that he was right in Sanji's face and he looked taken aback as Luffy declared, "No way! I don't accept!"

"What? You don't you accept!?" he yelled at him.

Luffy moved back up and folded his arms as he responded stubbornly, "It's simple. I refuse to accept your refusal. You're a good cook and I need one, so it's obvious that we should be pirates together."

"That makes no sense!" Nami sighed.

"To Luffy it does," Usopp pointed out.

"What I don't get is that how can he think that Crap Cook's food is good when he hasn't tried it?" Zoro added as Sanji gave him a quick kick, that he dodge.

"You're really pushing your luck here Moss-Head!" he snarled.

"Listen to what I'm saying," memory Sanji said, now starting to sound annoyed, "I can't leave here, alright?"

"What's your reason for staying?" Luffy asked.

"I don't have to tell you anything!" he barked at him and Luffy looked confused.

"What the…? But you just told me to listen to you," he retorted as Sanji stood up and yelled at him.

"I told you my answer was no and that's all you need to hear from me!" he said with a finality in his voice, "Now, take your pirate ship and go find a cook somewhere else before I cut you up, Straw Hat!"

"You're right about one thing," Zoro said, "We _could've_ found a better cook somewhere else. If only Luffy wasn't so stubborn about it."

"I'm beginning to think you really wanna die here," Sanji snapped.

Luffy, however, lost his temper and was now yelling at him, looking much like how he and Ace used to fight when they were little as they got in each other's faces. "You listen to me, jerk!" he yelled at him, "No one makes fun of my straw hat unless they're ready for a beating!"

"Did you two get into a fight?" Robin asked like how a mother would to two children who didn't get along.

Nami sighed. "Huh, and you were having such a civil conversation too…" she said.

"It would've ended well if he just accepted my refusal with grace," Sanji retorted grimly, "_He_ was the one who wouldn't take no for an answer."

"Well, you can't say that you're sorry that he didn't do you?" Usopp asked him.

Sanji rolled his eyes, unable to answer, but they understood what his silence really meant.

"Yeah, I noticed that," Nami said, thinking it all over. "At first, Luffy's almost always rejected whenever he asks someone to join him. However if the person really interests him, he will still try to get them to join anyway regardless. However, even if he _is_ rejected, he still treats them as if they were _already_ a crew member."

"Much to our annoyance," Sanji added in an undertone.

"He does that," Usopp laughed, "He'll sometimes act as if it is _his_ decision and not ours whether we join or not."

"But don't forget that when he decides on someone joining, they do eventually join," Chopper said happily, still so thankful that he ended up joining in the end.

"And that's the part that drives me crazy," Sanji sighed at the thought. But it was true… once Luffy makes up his mind, that's the end of it. And he usually gets what he wants.

At this time, probably tired of being ignored like this, Gin looked up to them both and said, "I'm sorry to interrupt…"

"What is it!?" the two yelled irritably at him.

"My name is Gin and I'm a crew member of Don Krieg's pirate fleet," Gin stated simply, his eyes looking to Luffy, "And you say you're a pirate yourself? What is it you seek?"

"Oh," Luffy said, his bad mood fading almost at once, "The One Piece! Pretty soon, I'm gonna sail the Grand Line and find it!"

Gin's eyes widen a little and a look of terror came over his face.

"What happened to him?" Franky asked.

"He'd been to the Grand Line and barely made it back alive," Sanji explained as he watched Gin shaking where he sat.

"Well, you can't have been seeking it for long," Gin said suddenly, gulping almost painfully. "If you don't even have a cook yet, your crew can't be all that big."

"Nope," Luffy said, pointing to Sanji, "He's only the fifth member."

"I told you I'm not going so don't count me!" Sanji yelled at him.

"Like I said," Usopp said with a little laugh, "It's like he thinks it's his choice from the start…"

"But I'm glad I did join," Sanji said, turning to her and Robin, "After all… how many men are as lucky as I am to sail to the ends of the earth with such beautiful ladies?!"

"Aren't you sweet?" Robin said with a polite smile and he looked ready to fall over with happiness.

"You seem like a nice kid so let me give you some friendly advice ok?" Gin said in an anxious voice, "The Grand Line is a place you want to avoid. You're still young so there's no need to rush into anything."

"Well, I'll give him that," Zoro said, thinking of the training that he went through. They were all strong but they were barely able to handle 'paradise'… the New World however… it still took two years for them to be ready for anything.

"Remember, the Grand Line is one small part of this entire ocean," Gin finished, "If you wanna be a real pirate, there are plenty of other places out here on the sea to explore."

"I see," Luffy said, but it was clear from his tone that he didn't care how dangerous it was, "Well, how about you just tell me what to avoid in the Grand Line now?"

"That would actually be a good idea," Robin stated.

"I can't," Gin said at once, but he was shaking in such a way that they could tell that he was lying. "I don't know anything!" he said, his hand up and gripping half of his face as if he was remembering a bad memory. "I don't understand it…! And _that_ is why I fear it!"

"For being a member of Don Krieg's you're a pretty whimpy pirate," Sanji said.

"Who's Don Krieg?" Luffy asked in confusion.

"Yeah, who is he?" Chopper asked curiously wit hthem.

"Wait," Gin said, staring at Luffy. "You've never heard of Don Krieg?" he said this in such a way that he obviously thought that Luffy was either crazy or joking around.

"Nope," he said evenly, "Who's he?"

"Foul Play Krieg," Robin explained, "I've heard of him… and I believe that he had a seventeen million bounty."

"That's almost the same as yours, Nami," Chopper said turning to look at her and she sighed.

"Please don't remind me of that," she said, still not happy about the idea that she had a bounty.

"What else do you know about him, Robin-san?" Brook asked her.

"Only a little," she confessed, "Just what I've heard in rumors. Apparently he had an entire Armanda of pirate ships… the largest ever heard of in the history of the East Blue."

"Around fifty ships and five-thousand men," Sanji answered her, remembering Krieg's words.

"Fifty ships?!" Brook repeated in awe. "That's amazing!"

"Yeah, but when he went to the Grand Line, he was only there for a week before he hightailed it outta there," Zoro added mockingly.

"Why? What happened?" Franky asked in surprise. But before he could find out, they looked back in time to see that Gin was in a small boat that he stole from the Marines. Apparently they were so focused on their discussion that they didn't notice anything else going on around them.

"Thanks for the warning," Luffy said to him, "But I'm still gonna go to the Grand Line."

"I know," he said with a brief nod, and he sounded like a different person as he looked to them both. "Do whatever you want. I'm just a stranger and I can't stop you from going anywhere you want to go. I just wanted to give you a fair warning."

"Well, it was nice of him," Chopper said as Gin looked to Sanji, his eyes filled with gratitude and respect.

"And to you chef?" he said, his tone filled with appreciation, "Thank you for everything. You saved my life and I owe you for that. You're cooking skills are the best I've ever seen." He smiled, "I hope to come back again sometime."

Sanji smiled back. "I'll have a seat for you," he promised.

Present-day Sanji smiled at that. Yeah… it was always nice to meet someone who appreciates all the work that you do. Though it was a shame that things worked out the way they did with Gin…

Franky sniffled, covering his eyes with his arm. "Your actions have moved me to tears, bro!" he cried out.

Brook was right beside him and was also crying. "I am so deeply moved that my eyes are overflowing with tears!" he said, "But then again, I have no eyes!"

"We get it," Nami said softly.

"CHORE BOY!" yelled a familiar voice and they looked up to see Zeff was up on the higher balconies and glaring down at them. "Get up here now!"

"Boss Zeff," he said with a sigh.

"You're hard to find," he barked, before his eyes found the clean plate on the deck and easily put two and two together. Past Sanji was looking a little apprehensive as he hissed for Gin to just get going.

"You didn't get into trouble for that did you?" Usopp asked him in surprise.

"Nah," he said, still puffing on the cigarette. "He may not act like it, but that old fart's got a good side in there somewhere."

Gin looked terribly guilty as he tried to apologize to Sanji, believing that he was going to get yelled at—or possibly fired over giving him that free food.

Sanji didn't look concerned at all as he picked up the plate, fork, and glass. "Whatever…" he said, before he dumped the utensils into the sea. "There," he said smirking, "Now there's no proof so there's no way I can get yelled at."

"Well said, why didn't I ever think of that?" Usopp said with a little laugh as Gin looked ready to cry again as Zeff and Luffy looked at him.

"Try not to get caught again, you here?" Sanji called to him as Gin spread the sail and allowed the wind to carry him off.

But as he left, Gin fell to his knees and bowed his head low. "Thank you again, Chef Sanji! I will never forget your kindness!"

And that was when everything faded again so that they were back in the open air. "This is really becoming tiring," Zoro said, looking up at the night sky. If this kept up they wouldn't be able to tell the difference between night and day anymore.

"That really was a kind thing you did, Sanji," Robin said softly. "You owed that man nothing but you still gave him food. Not just anyone would've done something like that."

He smiled back as he looked to her. "I'm a cook. It's my sacred duty to feed hungry people. Any chef worth his salt would've done that."

"But considering what happens next, you think you would've regretted it," Usopp pointed out.

"Why what happens next?" Chopper asked.

"Well, Gin came back… but he wasn't alone," Usopp explained grimly at the memory.

"He brought Krieg and the rest of the crew back with him," Zoro explained as Chopper went blue in the face at the thought.

"Now that could've been a problem," Franky muttered to himself.

"Doesn't matter," Sanji said, thinking back to what Gin did for him when faced with that poison gas. "I'd do it all again. Like I said, I'm a cook and people get hungry. That's all I need to know!"

Again, the next scene came up and they were suddenly back in the dining room with Sanji there, presenting a rose to Nami—clearly the first time they met—and was now promising her words of love and devotion when Zeff appeared behind him.

"Sanji?" Zeff said gruffly.

"Stupid geezer," past Sanji hissed, snapping out of love mode and glaring at his old boss in annoyance.

"This is an opportunity you don't want to pass up," Chef Zeff told him suddenly and some of the Straw Hats were surprised by the odd gentleness in Zeff's tone. "Why not join them and become a pirate?"

"But I thought he wanted Luffy to work there?" Chopper said, completely lost.

"Thinking back, I think that if it meant getting me out of there, he'd forget the damage and let us go," Sanji explained as he looked to his old boss thoughtfully.

"What? You mean they wanted you to leave that badly?" Brook asked in surprise.

Sanji shook his head. "It's a little more complicated than all that," he admitted softly as he continued to watch it—finding it hard to believe that it was once _him_ there… was this stubborn kid really him?

"I have no need to keep you at my restaurant," Chef Zeff informed him coldly.

Past Sanji glared at him. "Hey listen pal," he said in barely more than a whisper. "I'm the sous-chef in this place! What do you mean you don't need me anymore?"

"I think he made it clear," Zoro said smugly, but Sanji ignored him that time as Zeff leaned up against a table, and answered, "You fight with customers all the time… you flirt with every woman under eighty that walks through here… you can't even cook a descent meal."

Sanji, both in the memory and out, had their eyes twitching angrily at those words.

"You're as worthless to me as the chum after brunch," Zeff said, "_That's_ what I mean."

"Harsh," Franky said. Talk about letting someone know they aren't wanted.

"It's not like that," Sanji said, breathing in more smoke. He was too naïve back then to fully realize this, but he understood now what the old geezer wanted from him. He wanted to give him an excuse to leave so that he could fulfill his dream of finding the All Blue.

"So ah…" past Sanji said as they heard the chefs all laugh from their place in the kitchen above them and he sneered up at them.

"Oh, and let's not forget how the other chefs avoid you like you were poison," Chef Zeff finished up. "So just run off and become a pirate or whatever but get out of this restaurant."

"That's mean…" Chopper said with a shiver.

"You think they could tell you to leave in a kinder way," Robin said with a smile. But she understood, having experienced this when the archeologists on her home wanted to keep her away from studying the 'Void Century'. They merely wanted what was best for her… she could see that it was much the same for Sanji here.

"Yeah, well the old man never did know how to talk in a nice way," Sanji said unconcerned.

"That's how it is?" memory Sanji hissed back, "You shoot off at the mouth and expect that I'm just gonna take it, old man?" he slowly walked towards him, "I can blow off everything you said, but I won't let anyone trash my cooking! I'm staying here as a chef and that's final!" He grabbed him by the front of his coat and yelled, "YOU HEAR ME?"

Everyone in the restaurant was now staring at him as Zeff looked completely indifferent.

"Sanji-san?" Brook said with a gulp. "If I ever said anything you didn't like about your food, I'm sorry."

"Me too," Chopper said, not liking the scary look on his face. Sanji just sighed as he held up his hand, showing that all was forgiven.

"What do you think you're doing?" Zeff demanded angrily, "Grabbing your boss by the collar?" Throwing his hand off, he threw Sanji as though he weighed no more than a sack of flour, "YOU INGRATE!" he screamed, throwing him into their table and smashing it apart.

"Well, now we know," Robin said as some of the other Straw Hats, who hadn't seen this, stared at Zeff. It was almost impossible to get Sanji down, but this guy was doing it without any effort at all.

Cursing, memory Sanji sat up among the wreckage of the table and said, "Enough of the games. You can try to kick me out—but I'm here to _stay_. I'm not going anywhere old man. Not till you're dead and gone!"

Current Sanji sighed, knowing _that_ would've been a nightmare. As much as he respected the old man, the idea of working for him forever would've been too much for him.

Zeff didn't seem interested as he turned and left, but perhaps a trace of annoyance and even… disappointment was in his eyes? "Dead? Ha! I got another hundred years of kicking your ass left in me!"

"Knowing him, he'll do that just to tick me off," Sanji muttered as his past self hissed to himself about how Zeff always had to have the last word.

Luffy however looked thrilled and clapped a hand on Sanji's shoulder. "See?" he said excitedly, "He says it's cool! So now you can become a pirate!"

"SHUT UP!" Sanji yelled at him, looking ready to beat him up now.

"I'm not sure I get it bro," Franky confessed, as the memory faded again and he was rubbing the back of his head. "Did you really hate the idea of becoming a pirate that much?"

"Not really," he confessed. "After all, as soon as I saw Nami-san on the crew, I really wanted to go. But I just couldn't bring myself to leave."

"But why?" Chopper asked, "I mean… he said so himself that it was alright."

But Usopp was shaking his head to him, running his hand across his throat, letting them know that they should keep quiet about it. While he didn't know the whole reason behind it, he didn't think that it was a good idea to push Sanji too far and risk an ass-kicking.

The future memories they saw happened two days later when Krieg's ship appeared in the distance. At first, the chef's and the customers were terrified at the idea of getting into a fight with Don Krieg. However, what they saw was anything but a dangerous pirate. The enormous ship looked like it had seen one too many storms and seemed just as battered as Brook's old ship had been—it looked ready to sink at any moment.

The men on board were barely alive, looking thin and starved… and when Krieg finally appeared, he was too weak to stand on his own feet and had to be assisted by Gin.

Krieg was an enormous man with short cut gray hair and long sideburns, with a thick gauze wrapped around his head. The most notable aspect of Krieg's appearance is his golden wootz steel armor that was made up of chest plate, shoulder guards, and elbow guards, and it all seemed to be fur-lined.

With a great effort, Krieg made it to the deck and began asking for food before he fell to the floor. Gin begged them all to help his Captain, but some members, like Patty, laughed at that. Gin continued to beg, saying that they could pay so they were customers. The rest of the cooks refused, knowing all about Krieg's dirty reputation. Krieg was then bowing his head and begging for food as well and Gin was trying to stop him, tears in his eyes.

But the Straw Hats all knew that there was someone who was listening. Sanji had come in with a large bowl of food and actually kicked Patty out of his way—who couldn't believe what he was doing. But as Krieg eats, another chef by the name of Carne told Sanji and the rest of them about all the horrible things that Krieg had done over the years.

And it was soon clear that he lived up to his reputation; for once Krieg had finished eating, he attacked Sanji and even Gin was shocked at what he was doing. Krieg even went as far to injure Gin's shoulder as the rest of the customers went screaming out of the restaurant in panic.

"Ingrates," Sanji sighed, but didn't sound concerned as Krieg glanced around at the restaurant and stated that he liked it. He said that the second reason he had come here was so that they could take the restaurant. His old ship would soon sink and he wanted the Baratie as his new vessel. He then demanded that they serve food for the rest of his crew.

Predictably, they all refused and ready to fight. Krieg laughed as he yelled at them that he wasn't ordering anything—but that he was _giving_ them all an order. And no one had ever disobeyed him before and lived to tell the tale.

"Lowlifes," Franky hissed, "They gave him food and now he's barking orders like he owns the place."

Holding onto his hurt shoulder, Gin apologized to Sanji, saying that he didn't think that Krieg would do this.

"He should've known better," Nami sighed. "Most pirates wouldn't just leave like he thought… and if their ship was in such bad shape, of course they would try to take it."

"What did they do to it?" Franky demanded, looking out the window to get a good look at it. "It doesn't take a genius to see that it was once an amazing ship and they all but destroyed her!"

But Zoro didn't have to look at the damage to know what happened. They had a run-in with Hawk-Eye… he felt his breath caught in his chest at the thought of watching himself and his first meeting with Mihawk… he wasn't sure he wanted to see that first-hand.

Memory Sanji stood up and was actually heading back to the kitchen and the rest of the cooks were horrified and shocked when he said that he was gonna start cooking. The cooks, who each had giant knives and forks, were now pointing their weapons at Sanji ready to fight him if he set foot in that kitchen. He then explained as to why he is giving them food, how he was a cook and it was his one job, but was then smashed to the ground by Patty, who then turned a cannon on Krieg and attacked—asking him if he wanted 'dessert'.

Krieg complained how awful the dessert was and then pulled out a private arsenal of weapons and began firing on them all as he screamed out why he was the strongest.

"Yeah right," Franky said, rolling his eyes. He could understand having a shitload of weapons at hand, but just because you're decked out with arsenal doesn't make you the strongest. For himself? He had to really work to put these weapons into his body…

But before Krieg could get into another rant, Zeff almost knocked Luffy off the stairs as he had a giant sack with enough food for a hundred people, which shock the chefs. However, upon hearing Zeff's name, Krieg's jaw fell open in horror and he was gaping at Zeff.

"What's with him?" Nami asked in surprise.

"He heard of him," Sanji said softly as he watched Zeff turn and looked like he wanted to leave the room. The rest of the cooks were all demanding to know what he was thinking for feeding them… about how they'd lose their ship for sure if the pirates got their strength back.

"That would be true," Zeff answered coolly, but not sounding at all worried, "If they still had the _will_ to fight."

They all looked at him in confusion but Robin understood as she glanced to Gin's shaking form. Defeat is often a painful experience.

"Tell me…" Zeff went on as he looked back at Krieg. "Did _your_ will survive defeat?"

The words slowly dawned on them all. That Don Krieg had run away from the Grand Line and now they were all staring up at him… his face replaced with a very ugly look. But he never stopped staring at Zeff as Gin cowered by his side.

Krieg then told the story about Red Leg Zeff: the once famous pirate who was both chef and captain, and that it was his ability to kick that gave him his name. How he could smash bedrock and even leave footprints on steel… the nickname 'Red Leg' or even just 'Red Foot' came from the blood of his enemies which sent shivers down some of the Straw Hats spins.

Krieg also stated that Zeff was supposed to have died in an accident years ago, but he realized that he had only lost a leg which made him unable to fight anymore and forced him to retire as a chef of a restaurant… how he was now defenseless.

"Defenseless my ass," Sanji muttered with his eyes rolling. The old man may not be as strong as he once was, but he was _far_ from defenseless.

But Zeff didn't show any fear as he continued to look at them with a bored expression.

"I don't need to fight anymore," he said coolly, as he held up his hands, "I'm a cook. As long as I have my two hands I'll be fine. Now enough chit-chat. What do you want from me?"

"You gotta hand it to him," Usopp said watching him with awe, "He's not afraid of anything is he?"

"Nope," Sanji admitted as Krieg then said what he now wanted.

The restaurant and Zeff's logbook. Since Zeff once went in the Grand Line and returned safely, Krieg said that he wanted the journal written at that time. Naturally, Zeff refused.

"Of course he would," Brook said angrily. How could someone demand something as sacred as a logbook? However Krieg said that he'll then take it by force. He stated that Zeff's journal will give him the information he lacked when he first tried to enter the Grand Line, eventually making him the King, this leads to a funny scene with Luffy stating in front of everyone that he will be the one to be the Pirate King.

The other chefs told him to back off but Luffy wouldn't listen as Krieg snarled.

"This isn't a game," he said to him.

"Yeah, I know," Luffy said confidently, "But still… _I'm_ gonna conquer the Grand Line."

His words just seemed to tick Krieg off. "NO YOU WON'T! It's true we didn't have the information we needed but my fleet of five thousand men were wiped out in just seven days you brat! That place is hell!"

"Pathetic," Zoro said, shaking his head.

"Now what happened to him to cause that?" Robin asked, "It's not easy sailing the Grand Line but how did he lose all those men and ships in just a few days?"

"He's a shitty captain that's why," Sanji answered as the rest of the people in the memory were stunned to hear that and when Krieg was about to fight, memory Zoro and Usopp showed up to watch the scene. Krieg saw them and mocked Luffy for having a tiny crew.

"Well, that's not all!" Luffy said, holding up two fingers. "I've got two more!"

"I'm not a part of your crew!" past Sanji yelled in the background.

"Just give it up, Sanji," Usopp said with a sigh, "You might as well just join and save yourself the effort."

Krieg then took the food and went to go feed his crew, giving them all a choice. He was taking the restaurant one way or the other and their only options were to flee with their lives or to stay where they were and die. They had until they finished eating to make up their minds.

"I'm so sorry for this Sanji," Gin said, and he truly sounded like he meant it, "I never thought it would be this way."

"You have nothing to apologize for sailor," Zeff said in an unusually kind voice as everyone looked to him. "Every cook at this restaurant did what he thought was right," he finished. "That's all there is to say about that."

"Now I can see him as a Captain," Brook said, his tone full of admiration as he looked at him. He could understand why Sanji respected him so much.

"Yeah, say whatever you want of the old man, but he's a true leader," Sanji admitted gruffly, "Even if he is a pain in the ass."

"But Boss!" Patty yelled, sounding outraged, "Why are you acting like you're taking Sanji's side? This mess is his fault!"

"I think it's because he _was_ taking your side, Sanji," Robin offered as he merely lowered his head slightly as he nodded in understanding.

As the other cooks tried to speak up to that as well, Zeff lost his temper. "YOU FOOLS DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT!"

Everyone was a little shocked at the sudden anger in his tone as he explained, "None of you have any idea what it's like to be on the brink of starvation. To have no food or water on the open ocean…? There is no way you could possibly understand what a terrifying prospect that is. It's the most difficult situation a man can ever face."

Sanji didn't react at all. He heard all those words before the first, but that didn't stop them from having an effect on him. Unless you felt the true pains of hunger in your stomach, you couldn't possibly understand.

"What?" Patty said, sounding lost. "I don't know what you're talking about Chef Zeff…"

"Of course you don't dumbass," Sanji whispered to himself.

Zeff looked over at them all, a strange expression in his eyes, "The difference between all of you and Sanji… is that Sanji _knows_…"

The chefs all looked completely lost at those words, but they weren't the only ones. The Straw Hats all looked to their Sanji, whose face was shadowed by his hair.

"Sanji?" Chopper asked softly. "What's he talking about? What do you know?"

Sanji just sighed. "It happened years ago… and that's the reason I never wanted to leave this place…"

He was grateful that Zeff was speaking again, giving him an excuse as to not go any further with his answer. "If all you're gonna do is stand around grumbling," Zeff went on, a hard look on his face. "Then leave this place! And never come back!"

Not a single one of them moved. They all held up their weapons, ready to fight, they had decided to protect the Baratie, since it is the only place where they were accepted.

"Yeah!" Usopp cheered on, but Gin screamed at them to please leave—that they had no idea who they were up against. But memory Sanji walked forwards, moving one of the tables up and explaining that now that he fed them, he can beat them all… and he said all this with a terrifying expression on his face.

"Looking scary there, Sanji," Nami said, looking surprised.

"Hey Gin!" Luffy suddenly called out, "You said you don't know anything about the Grand Line! I thought you'd been there! Doesn't make any sense."

"Isn't it obvious that he lied?" Franky asked, as if hoping Luffy could hear him.

So Gin told them all what happened. How on the seventh day of their voyage through the Grand Line, their entire fleet was almost annihilated… he spoke it all as if reliving a terrifying nightmare.

"For that entire fifty ship fleet… to be completely eradicated by a single man…?" he gasped as everyone stared at him, choking in horror at what they were hearing.

"One man did all that?!" Brook cried out.

"Why are you all surprised?" Zoro asked tiredly, "There are people like that all over the Grand Line who are that strong."

Gin explained about how as soon as this man appeared he began to slice apart the entire fleet… and how, if not for a freak storm, the flagship would've been snuck as all. "It all seems like a terrible nightmare burned into my memory!" Gin cried out shaking in fear, his hands on his face, as if he hoped to claw out those images. "I just want to forget… his eyes… they were like a hawks! Sharp and murderous! His gaze alone felt like the cold hands of death!"

On the stairs, memory Zoro gripped the railing tightly as he stared at him, eyes wide.

"Is that…?" Brook began hoarsely and Zoro nodded, silently confirming who it was they all thought.

"Well then," Zeff said as they all turned back to him. "That can only be the one known as Hawk-Eye." Gin looked fearful that Zeff recognized who it had been. "Your description of his heartless gaze isn't proof of his identify in and of itself… but the way he so easily decimated your fleet confirms without a doubt that it's him."

"Hawk-Eye Mihawk…" memory Zoro repeated softly.

"I've never seen you look so shaken before, Zoro," Robin said softly.

"I always knew I'd find him someday," Zoro answered to her, "I just never expected it to be this soon."

Luffy looked up at him. "You know him Zoro?" he asked curiously.

Remembering the matter at hand, his past self took several calming breaths as he answered Luffy's question. "Yes, I do…" he admitted, "He's the man I've been looking for. He's the whole reason I set out to sea."

Luffy blinked up at him as Sanji asked Gin if Mihawk had some kind of a score to settle with them for him to go out and sink all his ships.

"We didn't do anything to him!" Gin cried back to him.

Zeff had an interesting suggestion. "Perhaps you disturbed him during a nap?"

"STUPID COOK!" Gin yelled in fury, "WHY WOULD HE DESTROY AN ENTIRE FLEET FOR SOMETHING SO TRIVIAL?!"

"He's been known to kill for less than that," the current Zoro answered, his hand going up to trace the scar over his eye.

Zeff smirked at Gin's fear. "There's no reason to shout," he said coolly, as if telling a child to off for being too loud. "It's just an example. I thought you'd like a little friendly advice on what kind of place the Grand Line is."

"Don't we all know it?" Nami sighed, but she was smiling the whole time as well.

Past Usopp gulped. "And what kind of place is that?" he asked in a croak.

Memory Zoro was the one who answered, "He probably means that anything can happen there."

Zoro smiled to himself, "And boy is that ever true."

"It's just one crazy adventure after another," Sanji added with a chuckle.

Past Usopp on the other hand now had tears of fear in his eyes. "HEY LUFFY! DO WE REALLY REALLY HAVE TO GO THERE?" he yelled at Luffy who was shaking at the foot of the stairs. "Luffy?" he gasped.

But their Captain was smiling as he cried out, "THAT'S SO AWESOME! THIS IS GONNA BE SUCH A BLAST!"

"Well, he's probably the one having the most fun out here," Nami added with a little smile. "Even when we're in danger, he's loving every minute of it."

"Don't you understand the concept of danger?!" past Usopp demanded loudly.

"No," current Usopp answered for himself. "It took me awhile to realize that."

"Finally," past Zoro said softly. "My life's goal will be achieved on the Grand Line."

"What?" Usopp gasped up at him.

"I was hoping that you were gonna take my side here," present-day Usopp whimpered to him.

"Why would I want to do that?" Zoro asked as he gave him an evil grin.

The memory Zoro leaned up against the wall with a similar satisfied smirk. "My rival… is out there somewhere and I'm gonna find him."

Past Sanji looked up at him and asked, "Are you that stupid? It's idiots like you guys who end up dead."

"I'm a little surprised that you would say something like that, Sanji," Robin said lightly.

"Yeah well… I'd come a long way since then," Sanji admitted, wondering just when he started thinking like that. He supposed that he had simply forgotten about his own dream as he tried to find a way to pay Zeff back for all that he done for him.

But when he looked out the window at the sea… he couldn't bring himself to stop dreaming of the All Blue. He had been dreaming of that miraculous sea for so long that he could almost see it.

"That may be true," past Zoro said as Sanji looked back at him, "But lay off the name calling. I devoted my entire life to becoming the world's greatest swordsman. It was my choice so I'm the only one who gets to call me stupid."

"And I meant that," Zoro nodded, shutting his one eye. "As far as I'm concerned, no one else has any right to tell me how to live my life."

"But still…" Nami sighed, "It's still stupid."

Just then, outside they could hear the sounds of battle cries and knew that their time was up. The Krieg Pirates were all ready to go again. But then something happened… just when they start to attack the restaurant, the great galleon was suddenly cut in half creating a lot of disbelief on everyone's faces and even a mini tsunami. Everyone was rocked around inside the restaurant and they were all trying to find something to hold onto. Zeff ordered them to raise the anchor before the ship sank in the waves… while the three past Straw Hats all went running outside to where Nami and the guys were on the Merry.

They followed them and they found Yosaku and Johnny floundering in the sea. They explained that Nami took the treasure and ship and left.

"WHAT DID YOU SAY!?" Luffy, Zoro, and Usopp yelled together in panic.

"You did what?" Chopper asked Nami who blushed a little.

"I know it was a dirty thing to do," she admitted as they heaved the two men onto deck as they told them the story of how Nami tricked them and took off with the Merry. "But you have to believe me, I didn't want to do it… I had no choice."

"But…?" Brook began before memory Zoro lost his temper. He punched the side of the restaurant. "Dammit!" he yelled, "She just had to make a bad situation worse!"

Past Usopp was looking angrier than they had seen him in a long time. The closest was back at Water 7 when he had been told that the Merry could no longer sail. "The heartless thief!" he yelled, "Kaya gave _us_ that ship!"

"We get why you did it now," Usopp reassured her in a whisper and she gave him a tiny smile.

Luffy jumped up onto the railing and searched over the sea to try and get a glimpse of the ship. "Wait!" he called, "I see a ship! It's the Going Merry!" He turned towards Yosaku and Johnny. "Tell me where your boat is!"

"We have it moored to the restaurant," Yosaku said at once.

"Zoro, Usopp, don't just stand there!" Luffy ordered, turning to them all, "Take their ship and go get Nami!"

"Calm down," Zoro stated, as if he could care less. "Let her keep the ship. Trust me, that woman's way more trouble than she's worth."

"And I still believe that," he stated as Sanji aimed a kick at his head.

"How dare you say something like that you heartless bastard?!" he yelled at him.

Luffy frowned at him as well. "She's the only one I'll accept as the ship's navigator," he said firmly, and it was clear from this tone that he wasn't going to change his mind.

"Oh, Luffy," Nami said, touched by that. They only spent a short time as crewmates, but he was already seeing her as their one and only navigator. The rest of them were also smiling at the moved expression on her face as memory Zoro threw Luffy an aggravated look. For a moment, there was a nasty moment of thinking that he would actually refuse… but he then sighed.

"Fine! I'll do it!" Zoro snapped in frustration, though it was clear that he wasn't happy about it. "You're one high maintenance Captain, you know that?"

"In more ways than one," present-day Zoro added as he watched himself looking towards Usopp and telling him to hurry.

"Besides, Nami had our ship! I couldn't let her get away with that!" the current Usopp said at once, his heart aching at the thought of the Merry. He didn't say anything else as they waited for Johnny and Yosaku to get their boat and bring it back.

"The ship's ready for action Big Bro Zoro!" they yelled together; once again, showing that these two were really two peas in a pod.

"Hey, what about you?" past Zoro asked, looking at Luffy.

"I should probably stick around here till I get things settled with the restaurant," Luffy said, jerking his thumb at the building, "you know what I mean?"

"Well, be careful," he warned, a slight trace of worry in his face, "The situation here could get really bad really fast."

Luffy nodded, "Yeah, got that right."

"Wow, I'm impressed," Nami said, and she truly sounded like she meant it, "You guys actually sound serious here."

"He does have his moments," Zoro shrugged just as they heard shouts coming from the floating pieces of the remains of Krieg's ship.

"Over there! It's _that_ man!"

"He came back!"

"Don Krieg, the man who destroyed our fleet is back!" someone's voice screamed out above all the others, "What are we gonna do?!"

That got everyone, Zoro's especially, attention. They were all focused on a boat that was sailing towards them… as soon as they saw it, even Zeff's cool disappeared as he watched looked up, his eyes wide, "That man is…?"

And there, through the dust from the attack that destroyed the ship, the form of a single man slowly appeared. The memory Zoro was shaking, sweat pouring down his face. On a small raft that was lit with several candles with eerily green flames—that looked as though something to fetch you from the netherworld. Some of them shivered at the sight of it… but their eyes were drawn directly to the man sitting in the boat.

He was a tall and lean man with a short beard, moustache and sideburns that point upwards. His clothing was made of a wide-brimmed black hat decorated with a large plume, and a long, open black coat with no shirt underneath, with red, flower-patterned sleeves and collar. There was a small, golden cross-shaped necklace hanging around his neck and a large, black sword on his back. It had a beautifully curved black blade, in the shape of a cross, and with a golden handguard decorated by blue and green jewels, and a hilt wrapped in bandages, with a particularly big jewel at its edge.

But underneath the hat they could see his eyes… cold yellow eyes that resembled a hawk that was hunting its prey.

"So that's him?" Brook gulped.

"The greatest in the world," Zoro answered with a nod. Even after seeing his power for two years, it was still an impressive sight for him.

"You mean he cut that huge ship in two?" Franky said, moving his sunglasses up so that he could get a better look at him.

"He's scaring me," Chopper whispered, hiding behind Robin.

"That all makes sense now," Robin said, now fully understanding the damage that Mihawk could do after seeing his power first-hand.

"He destroyed that entire fleet by himself?" Usopp gulped nervously, "With nothing but a sword?!"

"It's all that he needs," Zoro said knowingly, "You don't become a Warlord by being a weakling." But then he remembered Buggy and added, "At least most of the time."

The Krieg Pirates were all so full of fear that they couldn't move and were shaking in their boots as Mihawk sailed by them.

"That psycho followed us back here!"

"He's gonna kill us all!"

"Probably," current Zoro nodded.

Luffy stepped forward when he noticed that Zoro had frozen. "Zoro, who's that?" he asked him as he glanced towards Mihawk.

"The man I've been looking for," memory Zoro confessed as he watched his rival sail closer. "Hawk-Eye Mihawk…"

"So that's… Mihawk," Luffy said seriously, and the present-day Zoro could see that his Captain could sense it. He could sense the power inside Mihawk… he should've guessed that Luffy could sense just how dangerous this man was.

"Yeah, the greatest swordsman," past Zoro said as he kept his eyes trailed on him. Zeff, Patty, and Carne were only a little ways away and were talking about him as well.

"That's gotta be the guy who destroyed Krieg's fleet," Patty said nervously, "He sunk _fifty_ battleships out on the Grand Line all by himself."

"Looks like he came back to finish the job," Carne said anxiously, "But is that all he wants?"

"Hard to say," Zoro muttered, it was impossible to guess what was going on inside that man's head.

"Wait a minute," another chef said from behind them, "He looks like any ordinary man. He doesn't even look like he has any special weapons with him."

"He carries his weapon on his back," Zeff explained and they stared at him in disbelief.

"That's impossible!" Patty cried out in incredulity.

"He couldn't have destroyed a galleon like that using nothing but a sword!" Carne cried in agreement.

"Oh, he can, and he did," Zoro nodded dully.

Zeff just stood there with his arms folded. "Hawk-Eye Mihawk is a true master. He is without a doubt the greatest swordsman in the world." Here, Zoro couldn't disagree with that as he looked to his past self. He was looking nervous, but excited at the same time… a wild grin appeared as he put his hand on the white blade. He was gonna fight… he was willing to fight Mihawk for his title… or die trying…

**(So what do you all think? I realize that the last chapter sounded a little wordy so I decided to change things to make it little more fast-pace here. How is it? Please tell me what you all feel about it—and after much consideration, I figured out what form the monster is gonna be in. When I came up with the idea of this supernatural creature taking on the appearance from someone in Luffy's memory, I hadn't made up my mind about it. But after thinking it all over, I think I have the perfect plot twist later on. So I'd like to hear if anyone out there will be able to guess it… also, if there are any extra scenes that you would like to see? I will be doing Arlong Park as well as meeting Laboon. But what about Lougetown or other extra parts as well? And yes, I will be doing scenes like Alabasta, marineford, and Impel Down, so you can stop worrying already.)**


	17. Recipe for Disaster and Zoro's Vow

**Chapter 17: Recipe for Disaster and Zoro's Vow**

"So that's Mihawk?" Brook asked softly as they all watched the foreboding boat draw ever nearer to them, the Krieg Pirates all cowering away from the sight of it, staring with expressions of the utmost terror. "He's the one who destroyed Krieg's armada by himself?"

"Yeah, and he just tore up the flagship a few minutes ago," Franky said with an unusually soft voice, moving his sunglasses up so that he could get a better look at him.

Even Robin felt a little intimidated when she saw those merciless, yellow eyes. Though it was only the first time she had seen his strength first hand, but seeing just a little display of his power was enough to send a few chills through her. With little effort he was able to slice that enormous ship in several pieces as if it was butter.

"Zoro…?" Chopper said, glancing over at the past version of their Zoro. "You look a little freaked out."

"Yeah," Usopp agreed, seeing the wide eyes and sweat run down his face, he couldn't ever remember seeing him so petrified, "That's new…"

The current Zoro rolled his eye as he looked away. Yeah, he could see that his past was plainly startled by seeing his rival for the first time. Though, now that he thought about it, he was hardly what you called 'Mihawk's rival'… more like a stepping stone to him.

"You… you monster!" one of the Krieg Pirates yelled in a trembling voice, "Why are you doing this to us?! What the hell did _we_ ever do to you!?"

Mihawk glanced up at him in uninterested away, as if speaking was a waste of energy, "Just killing time."

"Of course he was…" Zoro sighed, knowing that Mihawk sometimes felt the need to slice something up when he had nothing better to do.

"You mean he did all that just because he was bored?!" Nami cried out with a gulp, sweat on her forehead as she stared at him. "And here I thought _you_ were a monster, Zoro."

"I am, but Mihawk's in a class all his own," Zoro confessed.

"Bastard!" another pirate cried out as he pulled out a pair of pistols and shot at him. But with the grace of a swan, he handled his sword in such a way that Zoro knew it couldn't harm even a baby; but he twisted his wrist very slightly… and just like that the two bullets were deflected and their courses were changed.

Everyone stared at him.

"That was amazing… but terrifying…" Nami said softly. "He barely moved but he managed to stop bullets without even trying."

"Such grace and speed…" Brook said in hushed tones. "If I still had eyes I wouldn't believe them! That sword must weight a great deal, but it's like he's swinging around a feather. Now I truly see why he is known as the best."

"Yes," Robin said with a slight nod. "Hawk-Eye, or his real name Dracule, Mihawk is truly a master of the sword and known throughout the world as the best. And from what he did to that ship, I think we can all understand how he earned the reputation."

"W-what, I missed!?" the pirate cried out, not believing it, "But I aim _straight_ for him!"

"He diverted it," said Zoro's voice, and for a moment the Straw Hats thought it was _their_ Zoro, but the past version of him was suddenly there, appearing behind the pirate and making him jump. "He changed the course of the bullet with the tip of his sword."

"That can't be!" he said in disbelief as past Zoro coolly walked passed them all, one hand on his swords, which caught the attention of the other pirates as the first demanded to know who Zoro was.

"He's got three swords! It couldn't be…?" another pirate gasped, looking up to his face.

But that Zoro didn't pay them any attention as he turned his full attention to Hawk-Eye. "I've never seen a sword handled so gently or with such grace," he said truthfully.

"And that is still true," present-day Zoro confirmed as he watched. That should've been his first hint that he was out of his league.

Hawk-Eye's eyes looked over at him without even turning his head as he casually replied, "There is no strength in swordplay based on force."

The current Zoro continued to watch unblinkingly. Only now did he really see just how true that was. Even with all the strength in the world, you can still be easily defeated if you didn't know how to use it properly. He learned that the hard way.

"Did you also use that sword to slice up this ship?" his past self continued on, though it was clear from the wild, excited look on his face that he already knew the answer.

"I did," Mihawk answered, as if telling him that what he did was something that anyone could do.

"Then it's true…" he asked, still looking like a child who was promised a big treat. "You're the best!"

Present-day Zoro nodded once again. Mihawk _was_ the best… but he won't be for much longer. He felt his hand go to Wado at his hip and he felt his resolve to beat him someday strengthen.

"Zoro-san?" asked Brook softly, not liking where this conversation was going even if it already happened. "Just what were you gonna do?"

"Yeah," Chopper gulped, "I don't like that look in your eyes."

His past self spoke again as he went to his black bandana and untied it from his arm. "I set sail for only one reason. To meet you."

"And what is your goal?" Mihawk asked with only a slight trace of curiosity in his tone.

"To beat you!" exclaimed Zoro, still grinning wildly as he tied his bandana on.

Mihawk smirked at him, "How foolish."

"I have to agree," Robin answered as she looked to the Zoro next to her. "You must've been able to sense how strong he was? Why did you choose to fight him here and now when you were clearly unmatched?"

"Because I wouldn't have been able to live with myself if I did something like that," Zoro answered her truthfully, his one eye never leaving the scene. "I set out for the sole purpose of being meeting and defeating him. It's true that I met him much sooner than I had originally thought, but I just couldn't turn my back on it."

"Even if it meant getting killed?" asked Franky incredulously. "You had a lot of balls taking on this guy after seeing what he could do."

He just shrugged as his past self pulled out the white blade and declared, "You got spare time! So let's do this!"

The Krieg Pirates, as well as all the cooks, all suddenly realized who Zoro was.

"It's funny," Usopp said, looking around at them all, "All they have to see is you with three swords and they know right away who you are."

"How many other people carry around three katana?" Zoro asked with a grin.

Don Krieg was watching the two with great interest. "Really? It's the pirate hunter," he said gruffly—though they were still standing on the Baratie's edge with the memory version of Sanji, they heard what he just said and Sanji was stunned by that.

"Scared of me crud-cook?" Zoro smirked as Sanji glared at him with his one revealed eye narrowed dangerously.

"I just didn't expect to see a pirate hunter on board a pirate ship," he hissed, "Now shut up! I'm looking forward to seeing you get your ass kicked again!"

Veins standing out on his head, Zoro shot a dagger-like glare right back at him.

"You mean you _fought_ Mihawk and lost, Zoro-san?!" Brook cried out in surprise. "But then… how could…?"

"How come you aren't dead?" Robin finished asking for him in curiosity.

"It's not important anymroe!" he yelled at them.

Just then, past Usopp was yelling at Luffy, telling him that they had to hurry or else they would lose sight of Nami and the Going Merry. But surprisingly, Luffy didn't even look at him as he watched Zoro and Mihawk size each other up. Or rather, Zoro size Mihawk up… Hawk-Eye didn't even seem troubled.

"A fight?" Mihawk asked him, with a tone that clearly said that he wanted to make sure that he heard right. "You're a weak, pitiful creature."

"Ouch…" Franky winced, "That must've hurt."

The present-day Zoro folded his arms as he thought to himself. That had been the first time since Kuina that someone had called him weak… and get away with it. Sure, he was known as the strongest swordsman in the East Blue, but that wasn't saying much compared to the rest of the world. His past self however was angered by Mihawk's words, but he did his best to hide it. He wasn't going to let Mihawk go without a duel.

If you blinked, you would've suddenly thought that Mihawk teleported over to face Zoro. But the Straw Hats, who were able to keep up, saw the graceful leap from the boat to the remains of what had once been a ship.

"If you are, in fact, a competent swordsman," Mihawk said in a skeptic tone as if he highly doubted it, "you should see the disparity in our abilities before we even cross swords."

"Did you know?" Usopp asked, a little afraid that he had asked such a daring question.

Zoro didn't say anything for a moment as he watched them. "Yes… and no. I had strong senses in these days, but nothing like true Haki so I couldn't really sense just how far apart we were in skill level."

"I must ask you, why have you challenged me?" Hawk-Eye went on, "Could it be your courage? Or, is it simply your ignorance?"

"More like a life-long mission," present-day Zoro said, looking forward to the day that he beat that cocky bastard.

His past self was grinning as he declared that it was his ambition that drove him to fight. And as he took out his swords he added, "Also I made a promise I intend to keep."

That got everyone's attention and they all glanced back at him.

"A promise?" Usopp repeated, sounding lost. "What promise were you talking about?"

"Not that it's any of your business," Zoro responded darkly, "But I made a promise to someone a long time ago that I would one day be the best."

What happened between him and Kuina was private. He didn't want to have to explain that he had sworn an oath with her that they would race to become the best. It was just like Luffy's promise with Ace after they lost their brother… and once again he felt shame flood through him at seeing such an important and personal memory.

"There isn't a person alive who can beat Big Bro!" Yosaku yelled from the boat as he and Johnny began cheering. "He's already the best in the world!"

"Hardly," Zoro said, but he was touched by their confidence. It's too bad that he let everyone down here when he did get his ass handed to him. But what really got him was the fact that Luffy was just watching with that same look on his face… like he knew how this would all end. But… then again… he supposed that it was clear from the start how this fight would end.

Looking hard, he could see that Luffy was oddly calm and collective here, but Zoro knew him well enough by now to tell that he was also really upset by this whole situation. It was clear to him that Luffy wanted to put a stop to all of this, but he kept his mouth shut and he knew why. He knew that Luffy was honoring the promise he made to him about not standing in his way.

At the same time, Mihawk took the little golden cross that was around his neck and revealed that it was actually hiding a short knife that looked more like for cutting someone's toenails than fighting.

Zoro's past self had already narrowed his eyes, realizing that he was being mocked when Mihawk held up the knife. "Funny. What do you think you're gonna do with that?" he demanded.

"It'll be more than enough, after all you wouldn't kill a fly with a cannon would you?" Mihawk asked him coolly, "You may have quite the reputation in the East Blue. But that doesn't mean much to me. This sea is by far the weakest of the four." He sighed a little before he said that he didn't carry any blades that were smaller than this—and it was like he was apologizing to him that this knife was too big for him to handle.

"He's cold…" Nami said nervously, knowing that there was no way that Zoro was going to take that lying down.

"He was trying to make you angry, Zoro," Robin offered to him softly. "Make you reckless and short-tempered."

"I know…" he answered. At least, _now_ he did. His past self was clearly showing anger at those words. "I've had just enough of your attitude!" he snarled and he actually bit down on the sword with such force that he ended up chipping off a piece of tooth. But he didn't care as he charged at him recklessly, "NOW YOU DIE!"

"You have no idea how big the world really is," Mihawk said almost forebodingly as he held up the little knife.

"Oni Giri!" Zoro yelled as he struck, but to everyone's amazement, Hawk-Eye didn't just catch the attack, but he stopped all three swords dead in mid-strike.

"He stopped you that easily?!" Brook cried out in shock. He remembered seeing Zoro fight back on Thriller Bark when he took on Ryuma and got his shadow back for him. He had never seen anyone so strong before… but here…? It was nothing to Mihawk.

Nami and Usopp both choked on their breath. Even though Usopp had already seen this and knew what happened, it was still hard to believe that a monster like Zoro could've been stopped so easily.

"W-what the…?" memory Zoro gasped when he tried to move forward—but nothing budged.

"Zoro!" Luffy yelled worriedly from where he stood, but didn't do anything else as he could only stand by and watch.

"What?! Big Bro's Oni Giri was stopped?!" Johnny yelled incredulously.

"But that's _crazy_!" Yosaku shouted, also in disbelief, "That attack's _never_ fails to stop an enemy! What's going on here?!"

"You normally wouldn't believe it if you don't see it with your own eyes," Robin stated causally as she looked to their Zoro who was looking deeply annoyed at what he was seeing. "But I think you look a little shocked here as well."

He didn't answer her as he watched. The truth was… he was… he had been pushing hard against that knife but Mihawk hadn't budged an inch. He could feel that strength and power behind all that, even with a pocket knife… and that frightened him. His past self was just realizing that as well as he fought—his eyes wide—not believing what was happening. Finally, either through a sudden burst of strength, or Mihawk simply grew bored, he broke free.

"I am not that far behind the world's strongest!" he yelled as he attacked again, but this time no longer as calm or collective as he usually was in battle. It was here that they could fully see that Mihawk shook Zoro to the core.

He now began to swing at Hawk-Eye viciously with his swords. But Mihawk barely had to defend himself as he parried each swing or merely stepped lightly out of the way—so he didn't even get a scratch on him.

"Zoro!" Chopper croaked as he watched his hero slowly break down and resort to just swinging the swords around like a madman. "I've never… I've never seen you so…?"

He couldn't even find the words to describe how he was feeling as he watched.

"I know," Zoro answered him as memory Zoro threw caution to the wind and just start swinging the swords around wildly; no longer caring if he hit anything at all. "But… I wasn't intending to leave that fight as anything but the winner."

"You're just waving the swords around, that's hardly swordsmanship," Brook whispered as Mihawk stepped to the side and caused Zoro to fall to the deck, panting hard.

"You're just toying with him, right?!" Yosaku screamed, his eyes wide, "Fight for real Big Bro!"

"Big Bro!" added Johnny, sounding close to openly sobbing.

But it was clear from the look on past Zoro's face that he was past listening. "You _can't_ be that much better than me!" he yelled, shaking with rage—and seeing the expressionless look on Mihawk's face just seemed to even angrier.

Again, he got up and began to violently attack, there was no skill or plan here, just vicious slashes. Present-day Zoro was watching with a sense of humiliation. It was as if he were still that kid who had never held a bamboo sword before and was fighting Kuina for the first time. And like then, he knew that it would end the same way.

Using the dagger to block another attack, Mihawk stated, "Such ferocious swordplay."

Zoro sighed as he wholeheartedly agreed with him. He wasn't thinking anymore—he was giving in to his anger. He felt Luffy move beside him and glanced back to see the angry look on his face. He knew that Luffy wanted to call him to stop fighting, but he stayed put.

Using his mouth, his past self moved his sword up to strike, but Hawk-Eye stopped it, creating a shockwave from the strength that both swordsmen created.

"How can he defend against Zoro's three-sword style with such a small knife!?" one of the Krieg Pirate yelled in astonishment.

"He's even more of a monster with a blade than even the great Zoro!" another cried, the swings were so quick that all they could see were flashes of light. As Zoro lunged forward, Mihawk moved and then hit the back of Zoro's neck with the side of his hand. They watched Zoro's eyes roll into the back of his head and they knew that he was fighting to stay conscious after an attack like that.

Present-day Zoro rubbed the back of his own neck. Even without a sword that man was dangerous.

"This is a nightmare! You don't stand a chance!" Chopper screamed terrified. "And this is who you have to beat to become the best?!"

"It's hardly a surprise," Robin answered, watching memory Zoro lay on the deck, trying to catch his breath. "After all… he didn't become 'the best' for nothing."

"It's like he's bored," Franky pointed out, looking at Hawk-Eyes's uninterested expression.

"I get it," Zoro snapped, this was like putting salt in an old wound. It wasn't something he was proud of or liked to be reminded of. Not that he could ever forget… he looked down to see the familiar jagged scar across his chest. He was forever reminded of that day… a permanent lesson on his own skin.

But he had to admire his past self's dedication. He was already getting back up, though now dazed from that last attack. He was exhausted as he marched forward, trying again, but he was so slow and worn-out that even a weak swordsman could've easily stepped out of the way. With nothing to hit, he fell forward again, gasping for air as he lay there—with Mihawk looking down at him—but there was something different in his gaze this time. Curiosity perhaps?

"What is it then?" Mihawk suddenly asked, "What weight do you carry upon your shoulders? Speak up, weakling!"

"I didn't think that there was anyone who could call you weak like that," Nami whispered to him. She had never seen Zoro as helpless as he was here. Even when he was fighting Arlong, trying to buy time for Sanji to get Luffy out of the sea, and a serious wound had opened up… at least then, however, he stood a chance.

Johnny and Yosaku were both ready to defend Zoro for that insult.

"How dare you call him weakling?" Yosaku cried, his hand on his sword, "You'll pay for that!"

"We'll teach you a lesson!" Johnny added and with screams they jumped—ready to get in the fight but Luffy wouldn't allow it.

"NO!" he yelled, stretching his arms out to grab them by the scruffs of their necks. "Yosaku! Johnny! Get back here!" he then held them both down as he commanded, "Just stay put!"

But Luffy was clearly just as upset as they were about it. Even memory Usopp noticed it as he glanced over at him. "Luffy…?" he began, but past Zoro was up on his feet.

He was still looking angry, although it was clear that he was far from giving up. "No, I won't lose!" he declared, "I _refused_ to be defeated!"

"Zoro stop it!" Chopper screamed out fearfully, turning back to their Zoro, "You could get yourself killed here!"

"I didn't care," was his only answer and Chopper's eyes widen. "If I had to turn away from my dream like this, I could never have forgiven myself."

'_And Kuina never would've either,' _he added in thought.

Mihawk didn't say a word as he watched him cross his three blades. "Tiger…"

Present-day Zoro could clearly remember this moment. This was where he could hear his own heart beating as the rest of the world faded away. It was as if he had grown deaf to everything except for the pounding in his ears of his own heartbeat…

He also remembered the words that had come back to him at this moment:_ "World's greatest swordsman, huh? Sounds pretty good… the King of the Pirates wouldn't have anything less than the best on his crew."_

Why had he suddenly thought about what Luffy said? But his past self had barely finished finishing the attack when Mihawk rushed forward and impaled him with the small blade… just right above his heart.

Chopper screamed, and everyone cringed at that. Even Usopp had shivers at seeing that all over again. The only one of them who hadn't reacted at all was Robin as she watched…

"WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?" Chopper screamed at him, tears in his eyes. "DON'T YOU KNOW HOW CLOSE YOU WERE TO GETTING STABBED IN THE HEART?!"

"He wasn't gonna kill me," he answered back coolly. And he knew that was true… Mihawk wanted him to at least answer his question before he killed him. Having such master control over a blade, he knew that Hawk-Eye could've easily have gutted him like a fish, but the fact that he was still breathing proved that he held back until he got a chance to speak to him again.

"You are defeated, yet won't step back. Why not?" Mihawk asked, as if wondering what he would do now.

"I don't know," past Zoro answered honestly as blood trailed from his mouth and ran down the side of his face to stain his shirt. "But… I will _not_ run. Even if I retreat a single step I'd be shattering the promises I made. I _can't_ run. I would lose my honor. You see, without that there'd be nothing left for me here!"

"You sound just like Ace here," Nami snapped at him, remembering Ace's bad habit of never running away.

"Maybe," Zoro stated absentmindedly to her, "But it wasn't because I had a death wish I promise you that."

"That's what defeat is," Mihawk stated simply.

But past Zoro merely answered, "Then I won't _accept_ defeat."

"Then you die," Mihawk pointed out coldly.

Looking at him dead in the eyes he said without a trace of hesitation or regret in his voice, "I RATHER DIE THAN GIVE UP!"

"Zoro…" Chopper whispered, tears back in his eyes—filled with both admiration and frustration for Zoro.

"Are you crazy bro? How can you get anywhere if you're dead?!" Franky yelled at him.

"I couldn't do it," he answered them again. "If I moved to retreat, if I took a single step back, everything that has made me who I am today… they'll all shatter and vanish into thin air. I said it before… I couldn't run even if I wanted to!"

"You really are insane aren't you?" Usopp hollered. Hawk-Eye on the other hand was giving him a new look of respect as he pulled his knife out of his chest. He stepped back and re-sheathed it before he demanded Zoro's name.

Moving his swords into an almost triangle shape, he proclaimed, "I am… Roronoa Zoro!"

Mihawk reached behind his head to grab his black sword. "I'll remember it!" he informed him. "No one as strong as you has come around in quite some time."

"But you were hardly standing up! What did he mean by strong?" Usopp asked confused.

"He didn't mean strength-wise," Sanji answered, looking over at cactus-head, fully understanding just what Mihawk meant.

"So as a swordsman courtesy," Mihawk finished, showing off the bright gleam of the sword as he brought it swinging around. "I'll use the world's strongest black sword to defeat you!"

"Thank you. I appreciate it," Zoro said as Johnny and Yosaku pleaded for him to stop, which he naturally ignored.

Current Zoro knew that was the highest respect that he could ever hope to gain from Mihawk. The World's Greatest was so impressed by his stubbornness that he gave him a face-off against the Black Sword. Here it was either the world's strongest… or death.

Spinning his swords, Zoro was ready to perform the strongest attack he knew back then, Mihawk charged. At first no one could see what happened, it looked as though Hawk-Eye merely ran past him—the two froze where they stood… and then…

"YOUR SWORDS!" Brook cried out as the two katana's in Zoro's hands suddenly shattered into pieces. Only the white sword in his mouth remained as Zoro fell to his knees in defeat. The Straw Hats couldn't believe it… they had never seen him lose in such a way… it wasn't even close.

Current Zoro lowered his head softly. This ended in his utter defeat.

Without saying a word, his past self carefully put his last sword back in its sheath as Mihawk raised his blade up, to finish him off. But before he could finish the attack, Zoro spun around and stood up, his arms wide, and his white sword still in one hand.

"WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?" Nami yelled at him.

"I may have lost but I never run," Zoro responded to her casually. Even Mihawk looked startled at that and asked him why as well.

Raising his head so that they could see the dark smile on his face; he answered simply, "Scars on the back are a swordsman's shame."

"Which is true," Zoro said proudly, knowing that there wasn't a single scar on his back, and that had to be one of his greatest prides.

Hawk-Eye returned the grin. "Fine," he answered. And with a single slash, he cleaved open a massive diagonal cut across Zoro's entire chest, for a second there wasn't anything… but then blood cascaded out so that the Straw Hats all felt green at the sight of it. Unable to stand any longer, Zoro's body slowly fell backwards to the sea.

"ZORO!" Luffy screamed in horror.

"You shouldn't rush these things young man," Mihawk informed him coolly as Zoro's body fell.

"Zoro!" past Usopp screamed out, unable to believe what he was seeing.

"BIG BRO!" both Johnny and Yosaku yelled, a fountain of tears falling from their eyes.

"How could you live through that?" Brook gasped out, watching the blood splatter the wood and waves around him. Memory Zoro's eyes were blank as they shut—he had accepted his fate to die here if that was what was to happen.

Chopper was screaming in shock, jumping up to run over to him, but Robin held him back. "There's nothing you can do," she whispered softly, knowing that this wasn't want he wanted to hear, but it was the truth.

"I didn't die remember?" Zoro reminded them all irritably. Truth was he hardly felt the attack that day… it all happened so quickly that it wasn't until he came to in the boat did he really feel the true impact of the blow.

"Don't you get it?" Chopper demanded, sounding close to screaming, "That's the same sword he used to destroy that ship! And you _let_ him cut you?!"

"I thought that it was bad the first time," Usopp whispered, shivering as the white sword slipped out of Zoro's hand and hit the water.

"NOOOOO!" Luffy screamed, tears also appearing in his eyes as he griped the side of the boat so tightly that it looked as if he would break it into pieces. Suddenly another voice sounded from right next to them.

"DON'T BE STUPID!" memory Sanji screamed out just as Zoro fell into the sea. "GIVE UP YOUR AMBITIONS AND LIVE!"

"I thought you were insane," the current Sanji admitted to him, still breathing hard on the cigarette, "Your opponent was way out of your league. How this fight would end was clear from the start… why choose death?"

"Because if I ran from this," he answered him harshly, "I'd be turning my back on everything I was. I couldn't do that. If dying by Mihawk's hands was to be my fate… I embrace it without a second thought."

"You didn't care?!" Chopper demanded.

"Well, he didn't die," Sanji stated casually, but he was still looking at his past self. He could hardly believe that this was him. Did he really say that? Looking at who he was now, he knew that he wouldn't be saying something like that now… "Shame isn't it?" he added with a little smirk at Zoro.

"Dream on…" Zoro said, rolling his eye, "or get real… either way… I wasn't gonna die here like this."

"Only because Hawk-Eye was impressed of your thick head," Sanji reminded him. "He could've gut you without even thinking about it."

Luffy was shaking from where he stood. "Damn you!" he growled out, unable to sit still anymore. Stretching his arm out to the ship, he rocketed himself over to deal with Mihawk himself just as Johnny and Yosaku jumped in after Zoro. Seeing his powers for the first time, everyone was freaked out as they watched—even memory version Sanji had dropped the cigarette from his mouth.

It looked as though Luffy was gonna slam into Mihawk as he came flying right at him, but he moved out of the way just in time so that Luffy crashed into the side of the wreckage.

"Are you that young warrior's comrade?" Mihawk questioned calmly when Luffy got his head stuck and was now attempting to pull it out. "I'm impressed with you for not interfering."

"Yes, not many people can do that when they're friends are in trouble," Brook added softly as Luffy managed to pull his head out and fell on his back.

"There's nothing to be upset about," Hawk-Eye informed him calmly, "Your friend will live."

Franky, who had been sniffling a little, shook his head. "Looks like we owe him one."

Zoro looked away, hating the fact that he owed Mihawk a great deal… not just for sparing his life… but for training him for the last two years. At his word however, Luffy sat bolt-upright at once and turned around to see that Johnny and Yosaku had already pulled him out.

"Big Bro! Say something please!" Yosaku begged as Zoro hung over their shoulders lifelessly for a moment.

"Zoro?" Luffy exclaimed anxiously. At hearing his name, the memory Zoro suddenly came back to life and began to coughed up water and blood.

"Zoro!" Luffy called back again worriedly as the two dragged Zoro back to their boat where Usopp was waiting for them. Together, they pulled him onboard and Usopp went to get some medicine for him.

"I'm amazed that you survived that," Nami whispered, thinking of when that wound reopened back against Hachi and Arlong. Now she fully understood where he had received such a serious wound.

"It's still far too early for you to die," Mihawk said as he folded his arms and proclaimed loudly. "My name is Hawk-Eye Mihawk! You're strong, but there is still much for you to learn! No matter how many years it takes I will hold this title as the greatest in the world and wait for you! Until that day you must hone your skills! Then, seek me out! Roronoa Zoro!"

Present-day Zoro smiled at that. Well, he may not have won the fight, he still earned Mihawk's respect and that was a win in his book.

"Wow," Brook said softly. This was amazing to see. Zoro followed his dream, and though it almost cost him his life, he still ended up earning the greatest swordsman's respect and even a challenge to come back one day.

Chef Zeff had stood there the whole time with that composed expression. "Not just anyone can earn the regards of Hawk-Eye Mihawk," he said, and there was also a tone of respect in his voice.

"Yeah, and all it cost him was a three foot scar and all that blood," Nami shivered, looking back to the swordsman. "You are really _crazy_, you know that right?"

Zoro shrugged, not really caring what she said as he continued to watch Mihawk turning to Luffy and asking him what his one goal was. Without any emotion in his face, Luffy answered with as little hesitation as Zoro showed, "To be the King."

Again, Mihawk smiled. "Your ambitions are even loftier than your friend's," he informed him. "That's quite the task."

Current Zoro smirked. Yes… that dream was even more challenging than surpassing Mihawk.

"Yeah, well you just let me worry about that," Luffy said defiantly, and even stuck his tongue out at him, letting him know just what he thought about that.

"He's alive!" Usopp's voice suddenly called out and they all looked to the boat. "He was just unconsciousness!" he declared as Zoro continued to cough up blood and seawater. Johnny and Yosaku were trying to get him to say something as Luffy called out his name worriedly.

Gasping for breath, Zoro proved that he was far from dead as he lifted his white katana into the air, the sun gleaming on the silver blade. "Luffy… can you hear me…?" he gasped out so hoarsely that they could hardly make out the words.

"Yeah!" Luffy shouted, and they were all wondering just what he was gonna say.

"You shouldn't try to talk with that injury!" Chopper screamed out, "You need to save your energy!"

"Shut up," Zoro said in annoyance. "There are some things that I needed to say."

And what he said next got robbed them all of breath.

"I'm sorry for disappointing you," his past self gasped out, breathing hard as if every word was painful. "I know you need nothing less than the greatest swordsman in the world."

Luffy's eyes widen and he stood there, completely taken aback by what Zoro was saying was saying.  
"I've let you down, please forgive me."

"Why were you apologizing?" Robin asked him, though she already had a good guess to what it was about.

"Because he let me ignore his command and fight for my dream," he answered truthfully.

"Ignore his order?" Chopper asked in confusion.

"He told me to go after Nami here," he reminded them as he jerked his thumb at her. "Not sure why he would… but as soon as Mihawk appeared, he let me stay and fight. He didn't interfere with us and even kept others from stepping in. He did it all to let me have a chance at fighting him. I owed this much to him."

Besides… a Captain's order was law and he completely went against his words. He was truly grateful that Luffy gave him that chance and he was letting him know that it was worth it.

"But…" Nami said, not really understanding it, but Sanji put a hand on her shoulder and shook his head.

"It's something that he needed to say," he explained. "It's alright…"

Zoro's past self was suddenly coughing up more blood and water as the three around him tried to get him to stop. But he kept going on, ignoring their advice as he declared for them all to hear, "I solemnly swear… from this moment forward… that I will _never_ lose again!"

And to their amazement, he was sounding choked up—like he was crying.

"You were…?" Chopper whispered.

"Not… a word…" Zoro told him darkly and the reindeer shut up at once.

"Until the day comes…" he went on, struggling for air, "When I defeat him and take his title."

Mihawk smirked at that, as if he was privately looking forward to seeing him try.

But then Zoro finally called out, "I will never, NEVER be defeated! Is that ok? KING OF THE PIRATES?!"

There was silence at that and a huge smile spread over Luffy's face, "Yep."

That was all he said, but there was something said between Captain and Swordsman that the others were having trouble figuring out the words. But present-day Zoro knew what it was. It wasn't just because of Mihawk's skill did he lose that day. He lost that day because Mihawk knew something he didn't… it was true… he learned a hard lesson that day that he never wanted to learn. He didn't understanding it then, but it changed him, and how he looked at the sword. He had to take a good, hard look at himself from the outside and admit that he _was_ weak. And facing up to that wasn't easy. That one defeat he learned more from than from any of his victories… he learned that day that in order to improve, you need to accept the fact that you're not the best… but still have the will to strive to be better than anyone you face.

Mihawk seemed pleased also as he turned and headed back to his boat. "You're a good team. I hope to see you again… someday."

"He's a very confusing man," Brook said softly, tilting his head a little at Mihawk's retreating back. It was almost as if he had something planned for Zoro.

"Hey, Hawk-Eye!" Krieg yelled jumping down to face him.

"I forgot about that loser," Franky said, now wondering just what he wanted.

"I was under the impression that you had come here to take my life," he said, sounding insulted, "Weren't you here to kill Don Krieg? Ruler of the East Blue?"

"If he was, shouldn't he be happy that he's leaving?" Nami asked exasperated, "Does he have a death wish?"

"Yeah, he saw what he did to Zoro didn't he?" Usopp said, still not sure to what had been going on in Krieg's mind when challenged him.

"The thought had crossed my mind," Hawk-Eye admitted, not even bothering to look at him, "But I've had enough fun for today so I'm going home to get some rest."

Krieg cracked his neck as he said with a grin, "I don't care if you've had enough… _I_ haven't even gotten started."

"Again… if he couldn't fight him out on the Grand Line, what makes him think he can fight him here?" Robin sighed, knowing that this is what over-confidence does to someone—makes them cocky and careless. As Krieg's crew begged him to change his mind, Krieg suddenly revealed guns and miniature cannons from underneath his armor and attacked.

"He just won't learn will he?" Mihawk asked in a bored way as his hand went back to his sword—no one could see what happened to him, but when the smoke from the projectiles cleared Mihawk was gone, Luffy had stretched over and was hanging onto the Baratie, and the rest of the crew was on the tiny boat.

"USOPP!" Luffy cried out, towards everyone on the boat, "Go on ahead! I'll leave Nami to you!"

"Roger that!" past Usopp cried back, waving the straw hat around, "Don't you worry about a thing! Zoro and I are gonna get her right back! Make sure you get the cook to join our crew! And then…!" he grinned wider as he threw the hat to him, "The five of us will set sail to the Grand Line!"

"I'm impressed Usopp-san," Brook said happily, "Before you were too scared to go to the Grand Line, but you sure sounded like you wanted to."

"Ha Ha Ha," Usopp laughed nervously as he rubbed the back of his head. The truth was, after he saw Zoro fighting so hard for his dream, it made him ashamed to be so worried.

Luffy stretched out to grab the hat, and he was grinning from ear to ear. "YEAH! LET'S DO IT!"

The Krieg Pirates were getting ready to attack them again now that the threat was gone and Usopp took charge of sailing the boat after Nami.

"Hey Pops!" Luffy cried out, still hanging on the side of the Baratie. "Can I stop doing these chores if I get those pirates out of here?"

"Suit yourself," Zeff answered in a voice as if he couldn't care less.

"Oh, so that's what happened," Usopp said, "He got rid of the pirates and paid off his debt?"

"Yep," Sanji answered with the smell of his cigarette smoke in the air. "And that fight between you two looked even worse seeing it a second time Moss Head. Who would've thought it?"

"You still could've been killed!" Chopper snapped at Zoro, feeling the need to give him a thorough check-up once this was all over.

"I lived, what's the problem?" he demanded.

"The problem is that you're always doing stuff like this!" Chopper yelled at him furiously. "Mihawk could've easily killed you but you kept going anyway!"

"Yow!" Franky called out, "Zoro you really lost it there! You were just waving those swords around!"

Now that wasn't good. Even Franky could see that and he barely knew how to use one. He sighed as he ran his fingers through his green hair. "I know that I was outmatched. If Mihawk hadn't been so merciful, I know I would've died. I get it. So stop bringing it all up."

"But why didn't Luffy step in? Or let Johnny and Yosaku?" Nami asked in annoyance. "I mean, I get that he doesn't want to get involved in someone else's fight, but come on, he should've known that Zoro was in trouble!"

"He did know," Robin sighed as Sanji nodded dully. And when they looked at her she went on, "But Zoro wanted it this way. I think he knew that Zoro never would've forgiven him if he stepped in. And besides, even if he had told you not to fight, that wouldn't stop you would it?" she added when she looked at Zoro.

Zoro sighed. "It's over and done with," he said, "I'm not proud of what happened, and I feel shame in more ways than one over how it all went down. But… what can you do?"

Luffy's voice suddenly sounded and they looked to see him hanging upside down as he looked at the pirates. Grinning from ear to ear, he leaned up, to continue hanging from the railing as he looked at Zeff. "Ok Pops, you promised me remember?" he said, just making sure he understood everything, "If I run those pirates off then my debt to you is clear. No more chores."

"That's the deal," Zeff confirmed with a nod. "There's no telling how much more of my restaurant you'll screw up if you stick around."

"All in all, I think it worked out for the best for everyone," Sanji nodded as Luffy laughed in agreement and bonked his own head—letting them know that he knew how clumsy he was.

"So kid," Zeff said in interest, "You said you were gonna be King of the Pirates. Were you serious?"

"Oh, he means it and he's intending to do it even if it means he'll die at the end of it," Usopp nodded.

"Well yeah, of course," Luffy answered without a doubt in his mind, "I'm definitely gonna be King of the Pirates someday."

"Don't we know it," Nami laughed.

Zeff smirked. "I've seen a whole lot of pirates in my day… but you're the first to state your desire so clearly and without a doubt."

"I heard, that back in the day, you were a pretty awesome pirate yourself," Luffy said.

"Awesome nothing," Sanji said, remembering the intimidating figure of Red-Foot Zeff when he boarded that cruise ship all those years ago.

"So did you wanna be King of the Pirates too?" Luffy finished asked curiously.

Zeff looked up at the sky to see a seagull soaring above and answered, "I do my best to forget about the past… I'm the owner of Baratie now and that's quite enough for me."

"I guess he must've had a rough and complicated life as well," Brook said softly, understanding the look on Zeff's face.

But Sanji felt the usual pang of guilt in him when he thought about how the old man gave up leg for him. He looked at his past self and could see the sad expression on his own face… but that soon changed. Krieg gave the command for the pirates to start attacking the Baratie. However, the chefs were ready to fight. Luffy launched himself over to them and was easily able to fight them all off—just knocking them back with little effort.

"Go Luffy!" Chopper cheered on with the chefs, all of them calling him 'Chore Boy'.

"It's hard to believe. The Grand Line is crawling with guys like these?" memory Sanji asked, shaking his head.

"You get used to it," Usopp sighed, "In fact, Luffy's ability isn't the strangest we've seen."

"What do you think the strangest is Usopp?" Chopper asked curiously. They were so busy talking about it, they didn't notice that the past Sanji telling the other cooks to do something for him.

Usopp thought it over before he said, "Giraffe man," he decided on.

"Giraffe?" repeated Brook in confusion.

"We met him back at Enies Lobby," Zoro nodded, fully understanding what he meant.

"Really? I thought that Soap Woman was stranger than that," Nami disagreed.

"What are you…?" Brook asked but she shook her head.

"Nothing," she confessed. "I'm sure we'll find out sooner or later." Now that was something she wasn't looking forward to seeing… everything that happened at Enies Lobby. That whole incident was like a bad dream—and she dreading the fact that they might see what happened there.

"Sanji," Zeff's voice interrupted and they looked to see Zeff staring ahead at the fight, but still addressing the Sanji standing next to him. "Pay special attention to how this one fights," he said, "Don't take your eyes off him for a moment… until this fight is over. Is that clear?"

While his past self looked confused, current Sanji did as he glanced up to see Luffy standing against the pirates. He got that Zeff wanted him to watch someone fighting for his dream as strong as he was… he hoped that he would realize that staying here at the Baratie wasn't the answer.

Luffy, who was now hanging from one of the broken masts, was looking down at the pirates calling out, "So let me see if I got this straight. You're attacking the restaurant that gave you food? I got no choice but to beat some manners into you!"

"Like you're one to talk about manners you shitty idiot," Sanji sighed, a hint of fondness in his voice.

But Zoro and Robin were both glancing at each other in worry as Chopper and Brook also seemed antsy as they had their eyes trailed on Luffy. They were fighting on a broken deck out at sea… you couldn't ask for a worse battle field for a Devil Fruit User. One slip and it was all over for Luffy. Krieg laughed, mocking him to fight on the water as the whole restaurant began to shake. With a great rumbling noise, something was coming up from under the sea and some of them were screaming in fear.

"Relax," Sanji told them all, "It's just the fins."

"The what?" Franky asked startled as he got a glimpse of dark wood breaking through the surface.

Sanji just smiled. "We planned for everything," he answered and the 'fins' were actually a wooden deck for them to all stand on.

"While it does give us more room, what's the point of this, Sanji-san?" Brook asked as the past Sanji walked forward so that he was standing on in the restaurant's doorway. He and the other cooks stood there, ready to defend the ship, all of them refusing to give up.

"To keep the restaurant from getting hit," he answered coolly. "So we gave them the choice to destroy the fins rather than the Baratie itself.

As they watched, Patty and Carne pulled out a secret weapon that had been hidden in the fish head of the Baratie and declared that they were gonna use it to protect the ship no matter what.

"Yeah!" Usopp cheered on with Chopper. "And that's no fish tale!"

Franky shook his head. Amateurs… a little cannon in the fish?

It turns out that Krieg was more than just some armor and pistols however. He was able to stop the weapon with his bare hands and had actually threw it back towards the chefs.

"Didn't see that coming," Robin said calmly as Usopp and Chopper both looked crestfallen at that.

"Looks like he is strong after all…" Zoro said, though he still didn't sound impressed either even as the giant fish head came hurtling at them. Thankfully Sanji took care of it when he jumped up and with a single kick, stopped it in its tracks.

"Wow! You stopped it Sanji!" Chopper cried out eagerly as the fish head smashed into the fin and leaving the restaurant unscathed.

"Well, I had to something to stop them," Sanji stated smugly.

"You realized that you could've killed the two in there right?" Robin asked as Chopper's cheer was caught in his throat.

"I wasn't worried," he answered coolly. "Those two are too stubborn to die."

"You sound a little frustrated at that," Nami said, her eyebrows raised. Bursting out from the wreckage, Patty and Carne were yelling at Sanji for almost killing them just as the Krieg pirates jumped up to fight, boarding the fins and laughing. It started off as a stand-off, but the cooks rushed in to fight—but they were no match for their sheer numbers. However the worst part was listening to them brag at how strong they were and it was enough to make the Straw Hats all roll their eyes. They weren't the only ones for the cooks refused to take it… they said that this restaurant was their home and they weren't giving it up to them without a fight.

Patty and Carne were a lot stronger than the rest of them and were able to fight them off… at least until another one of Krieg's men appeared. He was a towering man, was dressed with two large iron plates covering his front and backside, as well as two small plates on his hands with large pearls embedded in them.

"Who's that?" Chopper asked as some of the other crew had sweatdrop around their heads.

"I am Pearl! The invincible shield!" he cried out.

"Oh…" Chopper muttered as they all shook their heads.

"That Pearl can go jump in an oyster for all I care," Sanji said, rolling his eyes.

"Invincible shield my ass," Zoro muttered, "I could take him out in half a second, if even that."

Pearl had taken out both Patty and Carne, but when the pirates tried to take Patty's knife from his hands, Sanji kicked them out, outraged that they would try to touch a kitchen knife… a chef's soul.

"They didn't even have the right to touch it, let alone use it," Sanji snarled at that, feeling outraged all over again. But as the pirates charged him, he took them all out with a few kicks as Pearl mocked him about only fighting with his legs.

"I'm a cook remember?" memory Sanji demanded. "I couldn't do my job very well if I ruined my hands in battle." He held up a leg and finished, "So I'll be taking you down with my feet."

Pearl merely went on to explain that he won all sixty-one battles without a stretch… that he never shed of drop of blood in battle.

Sanji smirked, knowing that wasn't gonna last much longer. And no sooner were those words out of Pearls mouth when Krieg pulled out a spiked ball and swung it around, trying to take Luffy out with it. Luffy was sent flying through the air, but when he landed, he ended up hitting Pearl in the back of the head with such force he gave him a nosebleed.

"Well, that's an end to him never dropping any blood," Robin stated as the others all shook their heads. Really, this was getting pathetic.

"Are all these pirates in the East Blue like this?" Franky asked exasperated.

"More or less," Zoro shrugged. "I guess we're the odd crew out."

But as Pearl stared at the blood, his eyes were widening and he was shaking. The other Krieg pirates were all telling Pearl to stay calm, that it was only a nosebleed.

"Oh big baby," Nami said incredulously, "He got one little nosebleed and he's crying about it?"

"More or less," Sanji admitted.

"These… these people aren't just mean… they're dangerous!" Pearl muttered, his face twitching horribly at that.

"So…" past Sanji said slowly, looking around at everyone, "Wanna tell me why everyone's freaking out?"

Luffy, who was picking his nose, said, "They're worried about a nosebleed?"

Pearl was banging the two shields on his hands together, looking close to freaking out, screaming out, "Danger… Danger…"

"Gez, what is that guy doing?" memory Sanji yelled in annoyance.

"Something stupid," present-day Sanji answered just as Pearl set himself on fire.

"Didn't see that coming," Robin said in surprise. Pearl set the ship and even his own crewmates on fire and as the blaze spread, it had created a sorta wall of fire around him to keep any potential attackers at bay.

"What's with him? He's gonna burn down the ship the ship he's trying to steal?" Chopper cried out fearfully as the fire spread and soon the entire fin was now in flames.

"Why do you sound surprised?" Nami asked with a sigh. "These guys obviously don't think about anything that they do now do they?"

Past Sanji couldn't take it anymore as he jumped high, over the wall of flames.

Pearl looked horrified. "B-But these flames scare everyone away!" he screamed out, looking ready to cry.

"Well," Sanji answered, holding out his cigarette, looking like he didn't have a care in the world at that moment. "I wouldn't be much of a cook if I was afraid of fire!"

"You tell 'em, Sanji!" Usopp cried out.

"As expected of you Sanji-san!" Brook said in amazement.

Zoro rolled his eye. Really? He didn't even do anything! He just jumped over the fire for crying out loud. Like he thought, the cook was worthless. Why not take out the fire or something useful?

Robin, on the other hand, couldn't help but wonder something when Sanji spoke about not being afraid of fire. She glanced around, trying to find Luffy as memory Sanji continued his beating on Pearl, though he couldn't make it through that shield and only seemed to make the crybaby more and more upset.

"Please," current Sanji said as he viewed the fight, "I've worked with steak tougher than him."

"Then hurry up and deal with him," Zoro said in annoyance. But Pearl seemed to lose it completely as he shot out flaming pearls, aiming them directly at the restaurant—determined to set it on fire too. But Zeff was one step ahead of him, when the pearls neared him, he stood on his one good leg and used the peg leg to give a swift kick and the gust from that attack had actually put the fires out and caused them to drop to the deck harmlessly.

"WOW!" Chopper cried out, admiration shining in his eyes. "So he _can_ still fight!"

"Of course he can," Sanji answered as if it was all obvious, "When needed."

But with the fire still raging, Krieg had decided to take out the fin himself with the spiked ball. When he threw it, he aimed it directly over where Sanji and Pearl were fighting, but with them both trapped by the fire, they had nowhere to go.

"You're gonna get crushed to death!" Brook screamed out in panic as Sanji's past self stared up in horror at it as well. But just before it hit, Luffy came jumping through the fire and saved Sanji by using a Gum Gum Bazooka to send the ball flying back towards Krieg.

"He tossed that thing right back!" memory Sanji gasped in shock as Luffy was now attempting to put out the fire on his backside. But Robin smiled in relief. She knew that Luffy had once had a terrible fear of fire and she couldn't blame him one bit for that after seeing the Gray Terminal fire… and even after a few years, he still seemed to have nightmares about it—if what Ace said was true. But she was pleased to see that Luffy seemed too recovered from it; at least enough to be able to face it again. It did her a lot of good to see that.

As she looked back, she could see that the spiked ball was flung into another broken mast, smashing it apart even further and when it fell, it ended up breaking on Pearl's head, knocking him out and put an end to the fire.

"You think he had that planned out?" Usopp asked in amazement.

"I would say it was more luck than anything," Nami disagreed.

"This is sad," Franky said, shaking his head. "Don't you guys fight anyone worth it? First you had to deal with that idiot Buggy, then that piece of scum Kuro…?"

"And now this guy," Zoro agreed dully. "Yeah, I see your point. I don't think we've fought anyone normal since we joined Luffy's crew."

"I wonder if that means something," Robin said in amusement.

However the Krieg Pirates have not said their last word. While they were fighting, Gin had snuck up behind Zeff, and was now holding him a gunpoint.

"Now that was rare," Sanji said as he watched Gin holding Zeff down, the double barrel gun pointed at his head. "Someone actually managed to sneak up on the old geezer."

"Was he alright?" Chopper asked worried.

"How shameful!" added Brook as he watched, "He attacked from behind like that…?"

"Relax," Sanji said waiving his hand at them all, "It'll take a lot more than that to kill him off. Gin couldn't bring himself to kill him in the end."

With this, memory Sanji was asked to surrender. Gin demanded to have the ship then threatened to kill Zeff if Sanji fought back against Pearl who managed to get back to his feet. But Sanji wasn't moving and he even went as far as too mock Zeff for the state he was in. However the whole time, he tried to get Gin to come after him instead.

"He should at least be man enough to take him down without resorting to this," Zoro said with a sigh.

"But what could you do?" Nami asked him worriedly, "If you tried to fight back then he could've killed Zeff!"

"Yes, the only way to ensure his safety was to give up the ship," Brook added but then Pearl launched another attack, and without raising a leg to defend himself, Sanji's past self was slammed into the side of the restaurant.

"Sanji!" Luffy screamed out as blood started dripping down from Sanji's face and Chopper was screaming in worry as Luffy finished yelling, "Why didn't you dodge that?!"

"Even someone as slow as you crud-cook, I expected you to be able to dodge even that," Zoro stated.

"Would you shut up for once, Cactus-Head?!" he yelled back.

"Because…" memory Sanji hissed to Luffy, answering his question, "if I did that rat over there would've pulled the trigger on Zeff."

There was silence for a moment as that sunk in.

"You never would've guessed you care so much given at how often you two fight," Usopp said quietly as the memory began to cough up blood.

"I owed that much to the old man," Sanji answered as Gin tried to plead into just giving up the restaurant and that he wouldn't get hurt. But Sanji just couldn't… he couldn't give it up… and he knew what was gonna come up.

"This restaurant is that old man's life!" past Sanji declared from where he lay, lowering his head in guilt as he confessed. "I've already took everything else that man holds dear…"

Blinking in surprise, Robin looked over to Sanji and asked softly, "Sanji…?"

Due to what he had done to Zeff in the past, he refused to make that old man give up another one of his treasures. But he didn't say anything as he let his past answer for him. "His power… his dreams…? So while I'm around…" he then screamed out, "I'M NOT GONNA LET ANYTHING ELSE GET TAKEN FROM HIM!"

Seeing this behavior the other chefs asked Sanji what he meant by this, and the Straw Hats were all wondering as well—but they seemed almost afraid to ask. _Their_ Sanji didn't say a word as he lowered his head to hide his eyes from them as his past self was being attacked by Pearl, who took the opportunity for some payback, and had slammed his shields into his head, and blood was now pouring out of his mouth and nose.

"Sanji? What did you mean by that?" Franky finally had the nerve to ask. For a few seconds, he didn't answer…

"I took everything from him like I said," he said simply, with his past self was coughing up blood from where he lay. "Even though I never asked him to, he gave up everything for me… it was my fault."

Memory Sanji was able to raise his head and told the cooks everything. He explained that he owed Zeff his life. How that, nine years earlier, when he was a child, he was working as a ship's cook on a cruise ship in the North Blue. One night, the pirate Red Leg Zeff and his crew attacked the ship and pilfered it for anything valuable; however, both ships were caught in a sudden storm, and were destroyed. As they sank, Zeff managed to save them both from drowning, but had lost part of his leg in the process and the two were washed onto a rock outcropping, high above the sea.

Apparently the two of them were the only survivors—but despite living through the storm, the island they were on was like a slow and painful death sentence. There was little food for them: only a few rations had washed onto the rock with them, but there wasn't any trees or plants, no animals, and no way to reach the water to fish. Splitting up what little rations they had, Zeff ordered Sanji to sit at the other end of the island, and look for a ship.

Zeff had given Sanji enough food for five days, but he had been able to make it last for about twenty… and how he had nothing left but a moldy loaf of bread. But still no one ever came. Weeks passed and then months… finally it came to a point that it was like he had been trapped in a daze. He was stuck staring out at the sea for so long that he could no longer tell the difference between the sun rising or setting. After about three months, he was starved to within an inch of his life—hardly more than skin and bones. Emaciated and desperate for food, he decided to take a chance and kill Zeff for his food. But when he slashed open the old man's sack in a fit of rage, he discovered that there was only treasure inside. That was when he realized that, not only did Zeff give him all the food that they had, but Zeff had sacrificed his own leg for him as well.

Soon afterwards, a ship finally appeared, and they were spared from death. Because of this ordeal, Sanji pledged to never refuse food to a starving individual, no matter how evil or poor they may be.

The Straw Hats were all stunned by this as they watched Sanji next to them and in the memory.

"Sanji?" Chopper whispered in shock.

"I never gave up as a child…" Sanji said quietly, knowing that they were all staring at him. "And I wasn't gonna give up here."

"He did all that for you?" Nami whispered, her eyes wide.

"Ya, we were stranded like that," Sanji answered, still puffing on his cigarette. "And now you all know. We were the only two who made it and there wasn't anything to eat on that island but rocks. After going all that time without food I know only too well what a horrible experience it is to starve to death. I can't remember exactly how long I was out there, I lost track of the days, but any longer and I wouldn't be here. As soon as we were finally rescued, I vowed from that moment on that I wasn't going to let anyone else suffer like that if I can help it."

At those words, the four sensitive members were all crying again.

"Ah man," Usopp sniffled, hiding his eyes as the tears fell. "That's just amazing! Now I get why you didn't wanna leave! And that Zeff…?! What a hero!"

"Such a brave soul!" Brooks cried out as well as Franky bawled out at the top of his lungs, unable to find anything to say—or rather they couldn't understand anything he said as they were a big garble. "I never could've gone that long without food! I've have starved to death in no time at all! Ah, but I'm already dead! Yohohoho!"

"It does explain a lot now," Nami said, also wiping away a few stray tears. Even Zoro was feeling some respect for the cook. Not just anyone could go through all that and still have the will to live. If Mr. Nosebleed was as starved as much as he _thought_ he was, then he might prove to be tougher than they knew.

Sanji didn't say a word as his past self was struggling to get back to his feet. His hand curling up into a fist he gasped out, "That old fart… gave up his leg so that I could live!"

Everyone in the memory stared at him as he got to his feet and declared. "There's no way to repay the old geezer for his kindness unless I risk my life for him!"

But Brook, who had stopped crying for a moment, asked him, "But Zeff-san saved you for a reason! If you got yourself killed then all his sacrifices would've been for nothing!"

"I get it now," Sanji said, "But to me, this was the right thing to do."

However not everyone agreed. Luffy's eyes turned dark and was just looking at him as Gin asked Sanji why he got back up. Past Sanji smirked as he said, "'Fraid I can't do that. It's a little too much like giving up!"

The other cooks were trying to warn Sanji that he was gonna get himself killed; their words all feel on death ears because the Straw Hats could all see in his eyes that Sanji was ready to die for the Baratie. But then Luffy did something unexpected… he seemed to have lost it completely. With a dangerous look in his eyes, shaking in anger, he launched his foot up in the air… they knew that look anywhere…

"NO DON'T!" past Sanji screamed, also understanding what was about to happen, "GIN'LL SHOT THE OLD MAN!"

But Luffy was no longer listening as he screamed out the top of his lung, "GUM GUM…" and like that, his foot came slamming down from the sky so that when it landed on the fin, it was instantly smashed to pieces. With a dangerous, wild look in his eyes that was nothing his normal, cheerful self as he finished his attack, "BATTLEAXE!"

The world seemed to shake as his foot came down and with a great booming sound, the shrapnel went flying every which way and the ocean water came down like rain.

There was stunned silence for a moment as they tried to recover from what just happened.

"Wow…" Chopper said quietly, his own eyes wide as he stared at Luffy, who was standing on one of the floating pieces, his face mostly hidden, but he was still smiling—glad for what he did. But with fury on his face, Krieg ordered Gin to hurry and kill Zeff, except Gin seemed reluctant to do so.

"I don't see why you're all so upset," Luffy said as Sanji tried to tell him off for what he did to the Baratie, but as he got up Luffy finished, "But I will… I'm gonna sink it." And by looking at the look on his face, they could tell that he was deadly serious.

"He's not kidding around is he?" Robin asked as some of the others were horrified.

"What is he thinking?!" Nami demanded, "How's destroying the restaurant gonna fix anything?!"

"Without the restaurant the pirates'll have no reason to stick around," Zoro answered coolly, understanding what Luffy was thinking.

"But what about the cooks?!" Usopp cried out, "What are they gonna do?! Swim to land?!"

"I'm just telling you what his plan is," Zoro shrugged.

No one in the memory could seem to believe what they were hearing and past Sanji even got right up in Luffy's face. "You bastard that's what you're doing?" he demanded furiously, "You _can't_ sink this ship!"

"But if the restaurant's gone then there's no reason to attack then is there?" Luffy retorted.

"Yeah, but then what will happen?" Chopper screamed out.

"NO!" past Sanji screamed at him. But the present-day Sanji could get where Luffy was coming from, and as he looked down at Zeff, he could see the smirk on his face. He could see that his old mentor agreed with Luffy's way of thinking as well. But his past self wasn't thinking about that. "This ship saved my life! I owe _everything_ to her! And you will _not_ take that away!"

"You're gonna die for a dumb old restaurant?" Luffy asked him, and for the first time it sounded like he thought Sanji was the crazy one here. "Are you stupid?"

"What'd you say?" past Sanji growled.

"Yeah, he's the last person to be telling someone that they're stupid," current Sanji stated.

"Maybe, but he was right about this one," Zoro said rolling his eye. "Really? A restaurant? You were willing to die over something like that?"

"Oh, shut up!" he snapped back. "I owed everything I am to that place! It was my home as well! What? You just expect me to stand back and watch it get destroyed or taken by Krieg?"

"Getting killed?!" Luffy yelled out as he grabbed Sanji by his jacket and pulled him right into his face. "That's how you're gonna repay your debt?! The old man didn't save you so you could kill yourself! He did it so that you could do something with your life! Not to die like a fool!"

"I can't believe it, but he's making sense," Nami said. She wished she'd stayed so that she could see such an historic event. Who would've thought that Luffy was the one actually being the voice of reason?

Once again, he continued to surprise them all.

Current Sanji didn't say anything else as he thought about it all. Luffy did know didn't he? After all, Shanks gave up an arm to save him from that Sea King… thinking back, he now knew that his rubberbrained Captain knew better than anyone what that felt like. Luffy was an idiot, no doubt about that, but he also now understood that because of that simple mind of his, he can see past events that have taken place and realize just what needed to be done.

"And so your big idea is to help them attack us?!" past Sanji yelled back, the two almost nose to nose again, like how he and Zoro used to fight. It was a surreal experience since the two of them only ever fought about food.

"You know," Robin sighed, "It's sad to see two such good friends fight. Especially when you have so many enemies around you who are trying to kill you."

"Robin, why do you have such a scary mind?" Usopp asked fearfully. Meanwhile, Pearl was laughing, telling them all that they couldn't do anything so long as Zeff was their captive and that he was gonna kill them both himself. However before Pearl could strike Sanji and Luffy, Gin suddenly abandoned his duty of holding Zeff at gunpoint and dashed forward so that he quickly defeated him. Some of the Straw Hats were stunned at that…

"Why'd he do that?" Franky yelled, "He took out his own crewmate?"

"He couldn't let someone else do it," Sanji admitted, "I can't say for sure what was going on in his head, but apparently wanting to kill me himself was his idea of honor."

"WHAT?" Chopper cried out hysterically.

"You saved his life and he wants to kill you?" Usopp gasped. Krieg was also yelling at Gin, demanding to know what he was doing, but Gin stated that he will be the one to finish off Sanji—that he owed him this much. Here, they found out that Gin was Krieg's Chef Commander, his second-in-command more or less. And the rest of the Krieg Pirates all agreed that he was strong and a merciless monster to them all.

"You mean to tell me that half-dead guy is his right-hand man?" Franky demanded.

"In big armadas it's not that unusual to have commanders," Robin stated, "an officer in command of a particular portion of an armed force helps to control the entire fleet… after all with fifty ships, it would be difficult to command them all by yourself. Whitebeard, in particular, had Division Commanders to help lead his entire crew."

"You never would've guessed it given what shape he was in when he came here," Nami said, frowning a little as she thought it all over.

"The wolf behind the sheep's façade," Robin said softly. "After running into Mihawk on the Grand Line, and going without food for who knows how long, would take its toll on anyone."

"Sanji, look, I'm just following orders," Gin said, sounding remorseful, "I don't want to ruin this ship, but I think it's too late for that."

"Maybe," past Sanji said to him darkly. "But… if you think you're gonna get to this restaurant without killing me then you got another thing coming."

"Like I was gonna surrender to punks like them," present Sanji muttered darkly. "Well, who knows?" he added as he watched the two size each other up, "Perhaps in our next lives we'll be friends?"

"Sounds fair," Gin said, lifting his weapon on his shoulder, "Then it'll be an absolute pleasure to kill you… my good friend."

"If that's a friend, I hate to see what he considers an enemy," Chopper gulped.

"Geez, that's comforting," memory Sanji said as he lit a cigarette, "Asshole."

"Well said," Usopp muttered.

"You as well, chore boy," Gin added, looking over at Luffy.

"Why does everyone call Luffy Chore Boy instead his name?" Chopper couldn't help but ask.

"Just something we do in the Baratie," Sanji commented, "The new guy is always called that."

"Oh… I knew that," Chopper said, though he wasn't fooling anyone.

"Geez, thanks," Luffy said indifferently, but he didn't seem worried at all, "But I'm not afraid of any Krieg Pirate."

"Don't see why he should," Franky laughed. Gin was looking annoyed as the rest of Krieg's crew were all angry and were shrieking out insults and death threats—just outraged he had the gall to say something like that.

"We are the Krieg Pirates, the strongest in East Blue!" one of the pirates declared without a doubt in his mind.

Luffy looked at them all, as if pitying them and said, "Only because you outnumbered the other pirates in the East Blue."

There was nothing but silence—all the pirates grinding their teeth, looking like they wanted to dismiss it, yet at the same time, they couldn't declare that was a lie.

"Oh, that had to hurt," Franky said, but he couldn't stop the grin as they all started laughing.

"Well done, Luffy," Zoro laughed, "He hit them where it hurts! They aren't strong at all, they're all weaklings; they just outnumber everyone else!"

"I don't think they'll like that," Nami laughed, now feeling a lot better.

"Oh boy," memory Sanji said, "Now you really pissed 'em off."

"Guess I was right," Luffy answered.

"I couldn't agree more," Robin smiled. It was funny seeing how angry that the most feared pirates in the East Blue were getting angry by a few words. In fact, the Krieg Pirates, saw this as unforgivable and they start to rush in, ready to try and prove themselves. However, they are immediately stopped by Krieg: telling Gin to hurry up and kill them.

The battle went on and soon it was Gin and Sanji going at each other. Though strong, there was no doubt in the Straw Hats minds that Sanji could've beaten him if he hadn't been injured by Pearl. Gin was fast and able to keep up with him—as well as even breaking some of past Sanji's ribs by the sounds of it—but in the end, the injuries were what was making it almost impossible for Sanji to attack without terrible pain. It ended when Gin managed to pin him down and have his weapon above his head.

"ARE YOU TRYING TO KILL YOURSELF?!" Chopper screamed at him. "THAT ATTACK MUST'VE BROKEN AT LEAST FIVE OR SIX RIBS!"

"Believe me, I'm not any happier about this than you are," Sanji snapped back in annoyance. "But what else could I do? He was trying to kill me! It's not like I could take a time out and get a doctor!"

"You still could've done some serious internal injuries because of that!" Chopper yelled.

"If you had taken out that Pearl guy earlier you wouldn't have been in this position," Zoro commented and Sanji shot him a disgusted look.

"At least I was _able_ fight! You weren't looking too good lying in the boat and crying!" Sanji shot back.

"WHAT?!" Zoro yelled, his sword out, "I'll kill you!"

Robin's arms suddenly appeared out of their bodies and restrained them both. "Enough," she said firmly. "At least wait until after we get out of this mess before you go at each other, please."

With Sanji in pain, Luffy went after Krieg—but Krieg releases his armored and plan to kill Luffy there. He shoots Luffy with boom and spears. That spear ended up hurting Luffy at his foot, and he almost fell into ocean. Then, Luffy asks if Krieg is not serious to fight with him. So, Krieg answer if the important thing in fighting is strategy to kill the opponent. Krieg jeers Luffy is monkey cause he just attacks without strategy.

With Luffy dealing with Krieg, something else happened. Just as Gin was about to land the final blow, Sanji found himself before a supposedly heartless pirate unable to kill him. Even with Krieg bellowing at him do it, Gin was crying, declaring that because of Sanji's previous kindness, he just couldn't bring himself to finish the job, he just can't forgive himself if he killed him.

"Sometimes just the tiniest bit of kindness can change the way a person things," Robin said knowingly.

"One good turn deserves another," Brook said softly.

"Yeah, but in a real fight I could've taken him on," Sanji said grumpily.

Krieg was disappointed with Gin. Although, before that, Gin was the person he trusted the most. Krieg sees excess in Gin's personality that will win in the battlefield with anyway. Then, Gin said that he always followed every order that Krieg had ever given him and that he will always respect and admire him. But, Gin still cannot kill him and begs to let the Baratie's ship go. While this saved Sanji from being bludgeoned by Gin, it angered Krieg.

"You little son of a bitch!" Krieg yelled furiously as he stood up. "You think you can defy my orders and then tell me what to do?!"

Gin could say nothing as tears continued to flow down his face.

"It's pathetic. Morality, sympathy; weaknesses I never expected to see from you!" Krieg yelled.

"Since when is it a weakness to show compassion?!" yelled Chopper.

"That's right! By one act of kindness it spared Sanji-san's life! And you owe him your life as well!" Brook yelled.

"Men like that don't care," Nami sighed, having been forced to deal with losers like him for years.

"You are not my Chef Commander anymore!" Krieg continued to yell as he grabbed part of his armor and pointed it directly at the three of them. "Pirates?" he called to his crew, "Step aside." Just then, the skull on the shield opened its mouth to reveal the nozzle of a miniature cannon.

At the sight of it, Gin gasped in horror. "No, not the gas!" he cried.

All the other pirates freaked out as well. "He's gonna use the MH5!"

"We're all gonna die!"

"Where's my mask?"

Chopper's eyes widen. "He's actually willing to use MH5?!" he cried hysterically.

"What's that?" Nami cried anxiously, "I'm guessing it's bad?!"

"Isn't MH5 a deadly poison gas?" Robin asked him.

"Poison gas?!" Usopp screamed out in terror as Chopper nodded to Robin.

"Yes," he said, "Just breathing it in can kill a normal person in just a few minutes to even a few hours. It's deadly! Unless you can clear your lungs of it immediately there's no saving you! And even then that might only buy you a little time!"

"But that's bad!" Brook cried, looking around desperately. "What on earth did you all do?!"

"Krieg's men all had masks to keep them from dying," Sanji explained as the pirates all fished masks out of nowhere and were covering their faces.

"The only thing that matters in a battle is who ends up winning," Krieg stated before he smirked, "Even if more have got to die! Poison Gas is just a means to an end. Victory is all that decides what's right and what's wrong! If you're dead, no one's gonna hear you complain anyway."

"I think only the last part is true," Zoro stated in disgust. "He should at least be man enough to fight his own battles without resorting to something so dirty."

"When you don't hesitate to do unspeakable, horrible things…" Krieg stated, grinning ever wider, "_that_ is true power."

Luffy's face was cold and they were all sickened at the thought.

"Just where did he come up with something like that?" Franky demanded.

"He doesn't even deserve to call himself a captain," Brook said as he glanced over to see Gin pulling out his own mask.

"Might as well throw that gas mask away!" ordered Krieg, "You're no longer worthy to be a Krieg Pirate."

Luffy charged at Krieg, trying to make one last-ditch effort to stop him, and even proclaiming that he wasn't going to let him do it.

"You're wasting your time! CHORE BOY!" Krieg said as he punched the mast Luffy was running on, shattering it to pieces and causing him to lose his footing. He then took his opening as he shot Luffy with long yellow and green spikes from a Gatling gun, forcing him to land painfully back on the same platform with Sanji and Gin all over again.

"Damn it," Franky hissed, he can't even get close without risking something blowing up or being fired at.

"Gin!" Luffy yelled suddenly as he forced himself to sit up. "You don't have to listen to that blowhard," he looked up, glaring fiercely at Krieg, "because I'm going to kick his ass."

Gin gritted his teeth, and was actually telling Luffy off for insulting Krieg and that he understood his punishment.

"What's he thinking?!" Nami cried out, "He can't actually believe he deserves to die now does he?"

Past Sanji also yelled that at him, telling him to snap out of it because Krieg no longer carried about what happened to him. That he was gonna kill him personally…

"I deserve it," Gin answered softly. "Obeying my emotions meant betraying my captain."

"But if he disowned him, he's no longer part of his crew," Zoro added, "Which means that he no longer had to follow his orders."

"Try telling that to that idiot," Sanji told him.

"He… he can't really…?" Usopp whispered, unable to believe it. Such loyalty and Krieg was actually going to ignore it and let Gin die by his own hands?

"If I were in his position, I would have done the same thing," Gin said, sounding sure of his resolve, "And now… death is the only honor I have left." And to their shock, he went and threw his mask into the water.

"Now that is true loyalty," Sanji said softly.

"And that asshole just threw it all away," Zoro added, shaking his head, glaring at Krieg. "Gin chose the wrong man to follow."

"Man? No man would do something like that!" Brook said furiously, his hand on his sword—now itching for a chance to take him out.

"Were you guys the only pirates in the whole East Blue who weren't jackasses?" Franky asked exasperated.

"DON'T!" Luffy screamed in horror as he watched the mask hit the water.

"Why?" past Sanji asked in disbelief.

"Because he was an idiot," current Sanji said grimly, but he couldn't bring himself to forget what Gin did for him next.

Krieg laughed again, making them all angry enough to want to shut up him. "So, you remembered your place?" he demanded, "But it's much too late for that. Now you will both die together!"

And without another word, he fired the gas bomb… both pirates and cooks dove into the water as Patty and Carne took Zeff inside. But the three on the platform didn't have time to move anywhere. Thinking fast, Luffy had stolen two masks from the pirates before they dove and tossed them to Gin and Sanji. But as he went back to get one for himself, he was too late—there wasn't anyone. Screaming, staring around, Luffy was trying to figure out what to do.

"NO!" Chopper screamed in panic. "Without a mask, or anything to filter the gas he'll…!"

"Why didn't he think to get one for himself first?" Zoro demanded angrily.

"He never thinks that's the whole problem!" Nami yelled as the bomb was only feet away.

"He can't dive into the water like the others!" Robin pointed out, "But he can still stretch his head above where the gas is going to hit!"

But just then, seconds before the bomb hit, she spotted a mask thrown near Luffy's feet and he dove for it just as the explosion hit.

"LUFFY!" most of the crew cried out, fearing the worse as a giant explosion rocked the area and a wave of purple gas filled the air, shrouding everything in front of them so that they couldn't see anything.

"Don't worry, he survived," Sanji reminded them.

"But… But…" Chopper croaked out, looking close to freaking out again.

"But how'd he do that?!" Usopp demanded, pointing a shaking hand at the scene in front of them.

"No, I saw it," Robin informed them all as the whole area was now engulfed in the smoke. "I don't know where it came from but…?"

"That's the whole problem," Sanji said shaking his head at the memory, he couldn't bring himself to finish. It was deadly silent… the only sound came from the cry of a seagull above them… but soon it fell from the sky—dead before it hit the water. Chopper and Brook both screamed at the sight of it.

"It's dead!" gasped Brook, "It killed that bird instantly!"

They waited… and waited… every minute feeling like it stretched on to an hour. But after a painful five minute wait, the gas finally started to clear for them to see just what happened. Most of them were stunned at what they saw. Luffy was indeed safe with a mask on, but the problem was Gin. Sanji yelling through his mask to get Gin off him, who was holding it there, making sure that he couldn't move.

"He…?" Brook croaked out in a hoarse voice.

"Yeah, he saved me," Sanji admitted with a nod.

"Gin are you ok?" Luffy gasped. Gin didn't answer him, but his skin was now a sickly, dark purple and he was struggling for breath, coughing up blood from his mouth and nose. Every single painful gasp was weaker than the last…

Chopper screamed. "This is bad! We've got to clear out his lungs or else he'll die!"

"What can we do to stop it?" Nami cried anxiously.

"We can't do anything," Robin said, frowning heavily, "This is all in the past now."

"I know that!" Franky yelled, "But that doesn't mean I have to like it! Damn! I hate this!"

"They've got to put a mask on him!" Chopper cried out in a scared voice, "They've got to clear out his lungs right now!"

"It's _your_ mask, you gave it to me," Luffy whispered, staring at the mask in his hand, realizing what happened.

"Looks like we owe him one," Usopp said quietly as Gin collapsed just as more blood erupted from his mouth.

"No!" Luffy yelled, heading towards them as Sanji quickly caught him and held him up as he fought for his breath.

But when Krieg started to laugh at it, Luffy stopped and turned to glare at him. "What a fool," Krieg said, having removed his own mask, and was now mocking Gin's condition. "You're paying for a plate of food with your life? Oh well… maybe you'll learn… when you're dead."

"That bastard!" Usopp yelled furiously, his hand going to his slingshot before he remembered it wouldn't do any good, "First he orders him to kill himself and then mocks him! He should respect the fact that Gin followed his orders in the end!"

"Right now I'm having trouble trying to figure out whose worse," Nami said, shaking in anger. "Kuro or Krieg."

"I'd say that they're both the same level of slime," Franky informed her.

Memory Sanji was still holding Gin, who was gasping out Krieg's name. Whether it was in anger or pleading, it was hard to say as he wheezed for air. "Gin…" Sanji whispered softly, "So it seems…" he glared up at Krieg with disgust, "that Don Krieg wasn't the right man for you to follow was he?"

Krieg just laughed, and the sound of it was making them long to hit him. "It figures that you would still feel for that pathetic scum," he said loudly.

"Scum!?" past Sanji exclaimed in rage.

"That's right. Anyone who loses focus and betrays my ship is worthless to me," Krieg said as he grinned again. "He would almost certainly do it again. Putting him out of his misery is an act of mercy to keep him from dishonoring himself in the future and endangering my crew."

"Seriously, were you five the only decent pirates in the East Blue?" Franky asked again heatedly.

"Probably," Nami sighed, shaking her head.

"This is quite common among some pirates," Robin said knowingly. She had seen many times in her life to know just how it happened. The Krieg Pirates, meanwhile, just couldn't believe that Krieg would kill Gin. No one was more loyal to Krieg than Gin and the Straw Hats all learned that when they escaped from the Grand Line and were being pursued by Fullbody, Gin went out alone and masqueraded as Krieg. Gin always sacrificed himself to save Krieg and he did anything to win, that's why people called him "Demon".

"Wow, he did all that for Krieg, and look at how he thanks him," Usopp said angrily

"Gin just had poor judgment," Zoro sighed.

Past Sanji turned to Patty and Carne and told them to get the kit used for food poisoning, as Zeff told him to put the mask on to detoxify the gas in his lungs and then to take him to the upper deck of the Baratie where the air was fresher. Krieg just laughed and claimed that because of the poison, Gin will die in one hour.

"Is that true, Chopper?" Usopp asked quickly, his eyes wide with concern.

"It's hard to say, everybody is different which means that poison affects everyone a little differently," Chopper said, trying to leap over and get a better look at Gin. "To determine a person's time of death would be hard but it is possible. Their only chance to save him is to do what Zeff said, to help him breath and clear out the poison. But even then, that might not be enough!"

Luffy suddenly spoke again.

"Don't you dare die, Gin," he said—and though his words were quiet, everyone seemed to have heard it and turned to look at him. Even Gin raised his head a little to try and see him, though it was hard to tell with the mask over his face. "You can't let someone like him win," Luffy told him, his eyes as sharp and cold as Mihawk's had been as he glared at Krieg. "Stick around! Now I'm mad! You'll wanna see what I'm gonna do to him next!"

"Give that guy a beating that he won't ever forget!" Nami cheered on. They'd been waiting too long to see that jerk get the beating of a lifetime.

Gin, however, didn't believe that Luffy can defeat Krieg. Even past Sanji tries to stop him too and yelled that he will be killed if he attacks him head on. To make everyone stop worrying, Luffy just said, "I'm not worried". And then he started his attack at Krieg's front. "GO AHEAD AND GIVE IT YOUR BEST SHOT!" he screamed as Krieg grinned cockily and Sanji cried for him not to do it.

But Luffy ignored him as he charged ahead, and they knew that he wasn't going to back down this time.

"You are only running towards one thing, Chore boy. And that is…" Krieg said as he threw several small bombs into the water, "Your funeral!"

"You wanna bet!?" Brook yelled, waving his sword in the air.

"My funeral?" Luffy repeated scathingly. The bombs went off and the water splashed up around him and that was when Krieg took out his spike machine gun again and shot through the water.

"Oh, there's no way he could've escaped from that," Robin said.

"Don't say things like that, Robin," Chopper cried out as Krieg continued his hail of spikes. But Luffy still ran through it, and when he burst out of the waves some of them cringed at seeing several of the long spikes imbedded deeply in his body. But Luffy ignored the pain as he neared Krieg. Stretching his arm out, "Gum Gum…"

Realizing that he was going to try and attack, Krieg revealed a robe made of dangerous spikes to deter any attacks.

"EH! LUFFY STOP IT!" Usopp screamed when he saw them, but too late.

"Pistol!" Luffy yelled, as he went and punched him right through the metal spikes, the spikes tearing his own fist open, and managed to strike Krieg dead in the face. Chopper, Usopp, Nami, Franky, and Brook were all screaming in pain at the sight of it.

"Again, this is worse to watch than the first time," Sanji said, massaging his own hands. He rather give up a leg than a hand here.

"HE PUNCHED RIGHT THROUGH THE SPIKES!?" Nami screamed out, recoiling at the sight of it.

"OW! OW! OW!" Usopp yelled, wishing that he didn't see that, "Oh, that hurt just looking at it!"

"He almost ripped his hand apart!" Chopper screamed, twisting his face around with his hooves. "He could've permanently ruined it!"

"My skin is crawling at the thought of it," Brook added as he shivered. "Not that I have skin at all…"

"Nothing stops him," Robin said with a smile as Zoro smirked as well. Everyone else thought so as well. Both pirates and cooks were staring in horror at what Luffy had just done. Someone then summed up all their thoughts by shouting out three words: "That's messed up!"

"I couldn't have said it better," current Sanji agreed as they watched the blood dripping down from Luffy's injured hand. He was standing there almost like a zombie for a moment before he went and began to pull the spikes out.

"So is this my funeral?" he asked as he pulled out the first spike and threw it to the ground and went on, "Or yours?" He went for another spike, "You can't kill me… with little spikes!" out came that one. "My funeral…" he threw out the last spike, "will take more than this!"

Breathing hard for a minute and biting back the pain, he went on, "You'll have to do better than that… if you wanna beat me!" He looked back up, grin wildly, "Cause I don't think it's time for me to die just yet!"

"I'll never understand that idiot," Usopp sighed, really what was he thinking doing something that crazy?

The memory Sanji, who was nursing his wounds from Gin, was now looking over at him. "I know one thing, he's nuts," he said to Zeff.

"And I still believe that," he agreed, but he was smiling as he pulled his cigarette out of his mouth.

Zeff smirked down at him before he said, "I've seen one or two like him before. Stubborn kids who rather die and have to turn away from a fight once it's started."

Zoro grinned at that as well. Pretty much the whole crew was like that these days—he, himself, was a prime example of that.

"He'll stay," past Sanji said knowingly. "That's for sure."

"I'm glad he's with us cause guys like that are hell to fight," Zeff said conversationally.

"And I know that all too well as well," Sanji laughed as he watched.

"I don't care if he wins or loses," Zeff finished. "I consider it an honor just to be able to watch him."

"Because you're watching the future Pirate King take him out," Franky laughed as Luffy stared Krieg down until he was able to stand up again.

"So boy… it's not your funeral yet is it? Too bad," Krieg snarled from where he lay and slowly began to life himself up. "Because one of us has got to go. And since I'm here… I'd really like to pay my respects!" he charged Luffy and slammed one of his shields at point black, "GO TO HELL!" he screamed as he fired a miniature explosion.

But Luffy easily jumped to avoid it and even hooked his foot on Krieg's shoulder when he jumped over him—knocking him down twice in under a minute.

"You first!" Luffy shouted out as the bulky armor hit the platform with a resounding thud.

"YEAH! GO LUFFY!" Usopp and Chopper both cried out, jumping up and down excitedly.

"What a weakling," Zoro said, rolling his eye. "He's nothing without his toys."

"I think that would be the point," Robin said, understanding everything. Meanwhile, this creates severe anguish amongst his crew members, as Krieg has always came out of a battle unscathed. It was the first time they had ever seen Krieg being knocked down and they were all wondering that he wasn't invincible after all and his reputation would be destroyed if a kid was able to defeat him.

"You think?" Nami sighed, shaking her head as the cooks all continued to cheer on 'Chore Boy' on.

However, when one crewmate began to believe that Luffy might just be stronger than Krieg, that got his attention. "SHUT UP MAGGOTS! NEVER DOUBT ME!" Krieg screamed before combining his shoulder plates together to form his "Mighty Battle Spear", which he slams into the ground next to Luffy, creating an explosion.

"What was that?!" Brook called in surprise.

"Yet _another_ weapon he's so proud of," Sanji sighed.

The Krieg Pirates were finally rejoicing as they see Krieg's secret weapon, as he discards his cape and explained that it was stronger than the spikes he fired at Luffy earlier. While Luffy wondered out loud how the spear made an explosion as he hid behind a broken part of the ship, Krieg gave him an answer by bragging once again. "My mighty battle spear!" he boasted, "It's different from any other! When this thing hits you, you won't just be wounded and failing… YOU'LL BE BLOWN STRAIGHT INTO HELL!"

Continuing the battle, the surrounding wreckage was eventually reduced to sunken rubble with both combatants having very little room to move on. Krieg sung it again, sending Luffy flying over the ocean, but luckily, he stretches towards one of the floating platforms to save himself. However, due to the fact that he has lost so much blood thanks to Krieg, and that the platform he's standing on was unstable, he soon falls to his knees.

Chopper let out a cry of worry.

"He lost too much blood," Robin said worriedly, "And he's fighting on the ocean. This is the worst case scenario."

"What can he do?" Franky asked.

"There's not much he can do," Nami said at once, "One slip and he's history."

Sanji didn't say anything but his past self was already doing that. He had no idea how pessimistic he sounded back here. "He's lost way too much blood," he said, still holding onto his hurt ribs, "He can't fight for much longer. This better end quickly."

"But what is the Battle Spear?" Brook asked just as the pirates all began to talk amongst themselves about Krieg's weapon, which apparently creates explosions depending on how powerful the blow is. The crew members mentioned that as the lance weighs around 1 ton, yet Krieg can swing it around with only one arm.

"I get it," Franky said frowning. "Crude, but effective. Not that it has anything on Franky Shogun!"

"No way!" Chopper agreed with him, "That thing's awesome!"

Nami and Robin both looked at each other, their eyebrows raised, but not saying anything to that.

Krieg continues his assault on Luffy, who was dodging for his life. He jumped to the section of the ship Luffy was resting on and ended up blowing it up. On and on, Luffy was being attacked and was forced to only dodge until he found a way out of it. He was able to keep it up for a while before he finally lost his balance, which makes him wide open for an attack. However, just in the nick of time, Luffy grabbed the lance before it can hit him. Enraged, Krieg slams the spear into the ground, forcing Luffy to let go. Krieg proceeded to ram the spear at Luffy, who punched the tip, creating an explosion which sent him flying through the air.

"That idiot! Why'd he punch the spear head?!" yelled Nami.

"Well, it was either that or get impaled like a pin-cushion," Robin offered.

"Oh the image!" screamed Brook in horror at the thought. But already, Luffy was forcing his wounded body to get back up. And like before, Krieg swung the spear at him, and again, Luffy punched the blade, making it explode a second time.

"What's the point here?!" Usopp cried out.

"I get it," Zoro suddenly said, smirking widely. "Clever…"

"Well, he's an idiot, but when it comes to battle he's suddenly a genius," Sanji offered.

"I guess having two older brothers would do that," Robin offered, also figuring it out.

"What are you all talking about?" Brook asked in confusion as Krieg swung again, declaring that he was stronger than Luffy. Nonetheless, Luffy took each hit without budging an inch.

"Is he still believing that crap?" Zoro asked in annoyance.

"Damnit," past Sanji hissed. "There's no way that Chore Boy can take much more of this. That spear is way too powerful."

"Don't say a word," current Sanji snapped at them all as they looked at him with their eyebrows raised. "I didn't know just how damn depressing I was here alright?"

"No, you're wrong," Zeff said to past Sanji in disagreement, "Even with a hundred thousand more weapons, our Chore Boy can still bring him to his knees because he does not know fear."

"That's an understatement," Nami agreed quietly, but smiling a little as she remembered all the fights she saw him win. Not once did he ever show fear… when he fights… it's almost like he becomes someone else.

Memory Sanji looked up at Zeff in confusion as Krieg dished out another attack at Luffy, and of course Luffy met it head-on. Burnt black, Luffy landed flat on his back on the wreckage, smoking lightly… Krieg smirked as he turned and walked away, sneering that it was too easy.

But at those words, Luffy began to push himself back up. Stopping dead in his tracks, Krieg turned to look as he raised the spear back up. "Now _that's_ impressive," he muttered, but he was looking angry now.

"Stand or fall," Zeff went on, "Life or death… in a struggle for your very existence, you cannot have even the slightest bit of fear or you will be lost."

"Now I can tell that he was someone who truly was a real pirate," Brook said respectfully, now looking forward to meeting Chef Zeff one day. "It is hard to understand how someone fights unless you experience it as well."

But past Sanji didn't seem to understand as he asked him what he was talking about.

"Really dumbass cook?" Zoro smirked at him and Sanji threw out another angry death threat at him.

"That kid out there," Zeff answered impatiently, as if speaking to someone dumb, as Luffy charged again and took another blast to the face. "When he's fighting…" Zeff said as Luffy pushed himself back up through the broken boards with a grin. "He's not afraid of anything! Not even death!"

"That is still crazy," Nami said softly, but she got what he was saying here. Here, just fighting for your dream is enough.

Still smiling, Luffy got up once again and went up for another blast to the face. "Is it all instinct?" Zeff asked suddenly, "Or all a plan?" He grinned, as if he figured it all out on his own. "We'll know soon… if he lives."

"What plan?" memory Sanji asked him. "Killing himself?"

"Most would think so," Robin chuckled softly. "But judging from the fact that we all saw him this morning, I'm guessing that he does make it through this?"

"Barely," Sanji told her. Krieg was getting more annoyed, veins sticking out on his head as he snarled at Luffy, cursing him out. But Luffy just continued to grin as the chefs all cheered from the background.

"He just keeps getting up," Chopper said, his eyes wide in respect, "It's like his body refuses to accept failure as an option."

"That's Luffy in a nutshell if you ask me," Zoro told him.

"I told you!" Krieg yelled as he ran with his spear, "Today is your funeral!" Another boom went off, "I AM INVINCIBLE!"

"Please, I could take you down easy," Zoro spoke again, wishing that he could've had a chance at him. He didn't even have to move from here as he mentally fantasized about sending a flying blade attack at him. "It's not the number of weapons that matters," he went on, "A man and his fists can destroy a fleet. It's all how he uses it. Its courage, not weapons that will decide who wins. Krieg thinks he can conquer anyone who stands in his way cause of those toys."

"Yes," Robin agreed, "I see what his problem is. I admit that he does have talent. He is physically strong and he was able to pull together an entire of armada of ships. But he forgot all about his strength. He's nothing but surface. A battleship without sails or any other means of moving it…"

"Well, said," Franky said with a smirk. At least _he_ didn't have to rely only on his own weapons to fight. Just then, Luffy threw himself back at Krieg one more time.

"And that would be number five," Sanji said as another boom sounded off. There was silence for a moment…

"There is no doubt that Krieg and his pirates are strong," Zeff continued one, "But Chore Boy has something they'll _never_ have. Krieg may have more pirates at his command than anyone else before him… he may have terrible weapons of mass destruction to everything in his path… but he will _never_ have that kid's heart."

"That's something I think we can all agree on," Brook said softly, holding up his sword. He pledged his sword and life to the pirate captain, Straw Hat Luffy. He had no regrets following such a man.

Memory Sanji was just watching it before his one visible eye suddenly widen in understanding. Present-day Sanji smiled at that—this was the moment he fully understood what Zeff was trying to say… why he kept wanting him to leave the restaurant. Funny how it took such a goofball pirate to really teach him that.

"What's he saying?" Chopper asked softly.

"What he means is that this fight is already won," Zoro explained, "See, Luffy's a threat to him but that goes completely over Krieg's head. He thinks he'll win cause of his spear… but sooner or later, that's not gonna be enough."

No sooner did he say that did Luffy slam his foot into the deck, and the shockwave from that broke the tip of the spear, much to Krieg's confusion and horror.

"The Great Battle Spear!" Krieg yelled in disbelief. "What the hell did you do?"

Luffy grinned at him. "I just punched it in the head five times. It looks tired… maybe it needs a rest?"

"So that's what he was planning!" Usopp cheered loudly. "Yeah! Now that spear's not much of a threat to him!"

But Robin wasn't so sure. Yes, she knew that this battle was clearly Luffy's however that didn't mean that he would be beating Krieg that easily. Luffy's eyes narrowed as he said, "Now it's _my_ turn!"

"But was it really worth it?!" Nami gasped out, "I mean… taking in all that damage just to take out the spear?!"

"If its Krieg's most dangerous weapon then yes," Franky said with a nod. "Besides, Luffy's tougher than that. It'll take a lot more than just a few bombs to kill him off.

"You ready for this? Because that was all I needed," Luffy said with a huge grin. "Now that your little toy's broken, you're nothing to me."

"Don't get cocky Luffy," Usopp said, knowing that's what did Krieg in.

"But that's about it," Sanji said, "Krieg's nothing on his own. And if they weren't fighting on the ocean, I'm sure that Luffy could've taken him out a lot sooner."

Krieg's eyes narrowed, "Oh yeah?"

"Yeah, without the blade, it's just a bomb on a stick. And let's face it, that's pretty lame," Luffy stated.

"I don't think it's that simple," Chopper said nervously as Krieg smirked again.

Krieg attacked Luffy again, but Luffy dodged it and jumps up to the mast, swinging around like how a monkey would from the tree. Then Krieg breaks the mast, missing Luffy completely as he threw the mast like a javelin back at him. But, Krieg destroyed it by shooting fire at it from a miniature flamethrower attached to his wrist.

"This guy's got a flamethrower too?!" Usopp cried out exasperatedly.

"How many weapons does that guy have?" past Sanji yelled.

"Too many," Sanji answered. Everyone was surprised and couldn't believe that Luffy is still able to stand on his feet. Once they were on a stable platform Luffy ran forward to hit Krieg with his Gum Gum Gatling. Krieg's armor, however, withstood the attack. Finally angry, Luffy ran forward, stretching his arm out so that he could hit him once again… when his fist hit the armor they could hear the deep ringing noise like a bell when he hit.

"Damn it! What's that stuff made of?!" Usopp yelled.

"Wootz steel armor isn't going to break easily," Robin answered. Luffy kept going, but Krieg hit him with the remains of the spear and he was sent back across the deck. With Krieg mocking Luffy, they were all wishing that they could jump in and teach that guy a lesson. As Luffy was trying to recover, Krieg jumped to the top of the tallest remaining mast and sneered down at him, calling to him to get him to look up.

Sanji smiled, knowing just what was gonna happen here and he couldn't wait to see Luffy beat him all over again.

"You don't stand a chance boy!" he yelled down, "Real power comes from deadly weapons! They're the source of true strength!" he sneered, "See, only the strong are meant to live! And that's me!"

"Really?" Sanji asked, shaking his head. How could he have ever thought this moron was a threat?

"Take your own advice you asshole!" Usopp yelled. Krieg threw out bombs from his place on top the mast but Luffy chased in to try and stop him. The whole time, there was an evil grin still on his face, "Yeah?" he challenged, "That's what you think!"

He threw his arms back when he got near enough and they knew just what attack he was gonna use this time. Krieg hit him with his weapon one more time—but it wasn't enough to stop the Bazooka that came flying at him. Through the explosion and smoke, Luffy charged through and finished crying out his attack—Krieg screaming in shock. And that was when he was sent flying into the air, his bombs falling from his hands.

"What's wrong with Luffy?" Nami cried out, seeing the blank look in Luffy's eyes, burnt and smoke coming out of his mouth from that last detonation.

"He's stunned!" Chopper screamed out. Though he knew that it wasn't enough to kill him, he knew those bombs must've done a lot of damage.

"That's it?!" Krieg bragged as he went flying backwards. "After all that big talk that's all you got?!"

"We could say the same thing about you!" Franky yelled angrily. But then he blinked in surprise to see that his golden arm was cracking apart. Krieg noticed it too and was yelling in disbelief about it. However, his smirk was back soon when he noticed that Luffy still didn't move. To him, his destroyed armor was enough of a price for this victory…

_If_ it was a victory…

But past Sanji realized what those bombs were and screamed up at Luffy, "IT'S A TRAP! GET OUT!"

The bombs Krieg's dropped exploded and destroyed the rest of the battlefield. There wasn't anything left but splinters—the rocking waves put everyone in the water in danger and they screamed as they struggled to stay afloat. They could hear Sanji crying out over the noise in fear…

They all sat there, horrified that Luffy was dead as the water fell from the sky like rain once again. But without them realizing it, Zeff's words were suddenly ringing in each of their heads:

"_When he's fighting… He's not afraid of anything! Not even death! Is it all instinct? Or all a plan? We'll know soon… if he lives."_

Once again, Luffy surprised them all, bursting through the smoke, Krieg screaming out in terror at the sight of his face—losing all his cool.

"What!?" Krieg screamed in utter shock.

"Gum Gum Bazooka!" Luffy yelled, and when this attack hit, it did the job. He destroyed the armor by shattered it to pieces and sent him falling to the ocean.

"I TOTALLY WIN!" Luffy screamed out, his hands in the air in victory.

"HE DID IT!" Chopper screamed excitedly.

"Was there any doubt?!" Usopp yelled.

"I wouldn't get my hopes up yet," Sanji said, looking up, remembering what was about to happen.

"THIS ISN'T OVER YET BOY!" Krieg screamed, and Luffy looked taken aback by the fact that he was still in it.

"Oh, man what's it gonna take to shut this guy up?!" Franky yelled when Krieg shot a steel net from the same arm that had the flamethrower and wrapped around Luffy. He was now trapped and Krieg was laughing as he pulled him to the sea.

"That's not good," Robin said anxiously, knowing that this was what Krieg had been trying to do from the beginning.

Krieg laughed in triumph as he as he pulled Luffy towards the sea. "You can't escape! This is a steel net!"

"Dirty trick!" Brook yelled, knowing that Luffy better think fast if he wanted to make it out of this one. Luffy struggled in the net, as Krieg screamed out triumphantly, "It's over! That's the ocean down there! Looks like I'll be getting the last laugh after all, Chore Boy!"

But Luffy suddenly had an idea, forcing his arms and legs through the net, freeing them.

"Krieg made one big mistake," Zoro laughed, "He let Luffy use his limbs!"

With his arms and legs free, he laughed out, "I got that jerk right where I wanted him!"

"Really?!" Chopper screamed out animatedly. Sanji just watched, feeling just as amazed as he did back then. He hasn't even flinched at this… he remembered wondering just how he could stay so calm despite all this?

Luffy began to spin his legs rapidly and managed to lock his feet around Krieg's head and spun around to trap him, spinning like a propeller as he aimed it right at the Baratie's fin."Time for me to end this… right now! Gum Gum…" he cried out eagerly.

"Going down," Robin said smiling as the two were both screaming—but for different reasons.

"GIANT HAMMER!" And with that, Luffy slammed Krieg's head into the fin, shattering what was left of it, where Krieg finally lost and backed out.

"Now it's over," Sanji grinned just as Luffy hit the water and the memory disappeared so that they were back among the dark trees once again.

"What happened?" Chopper cried out looking around.

"Relax," Sanji said, "After the old geezer told me that Devil Fruit Users can't swim, I fished Luffy out before he drowned and Gin took Krieg and the others and left."

"Wait, so he did make it?" Nami asked pleasantly surprised.

"Hard to say," Sanji sighed, lighting up another cigarette. "He was still really sick. But he said that he was going to spend what was left of his time here fighting for his dream of going to the Grand Line."

"The Grand Line?" Usopp asked in surprise.

"I can't say for sure," Sanji answered. "But he said that it had become his dream. I have no idea to what happened to him, or if he is even still alive. But we gave him a boat and they left in. After we hauled Luffy inside and treated his injuries, he pretty much slept everything off."

"What a fight though!" Usopp said in admiration. "No matter what happened, he just kept getting back up to fight! That was just awesome!"

"Yeah!" Chopper cheered on eagerly. "But I'm going to talk to him about this! If he thinks that he can still get up to fight after taking all those bombs?"

"He'll live," Zoro smirked. "So is this all we see about you crud cook?"

"Would you watch it?" Sanji snapped back when the memory came back and they were all standing in a room, still on the Baratie. Luffy was sitting up in bed, looking around sleepily and realized that he wasn't alone. Sanji was sitting in the window, looking out at the sea. Luffy blinked a few times, and they could see that he had several bandages wrapped in the places where he pulled the spikes out as he put his hand on his head and screamed out in panic. "MY HAT! WHERE'S MY HAT?!"

"It's right there! Calm down!" Sanji said loudly. Luffy's hat was sitting on a shelf with things like cigarettes and even a picture of Sanji and Zeff when they first opened the restaurant.

"Is that you, Sanji?" Robin asked, as she looked over to get a look at the picture. "Weren't you cute?"

"Ah! You really think so Robin dear?" he swooned, his eyes like hearts as he looked at her hopefully.

"Don't take it like that, idiot," Nami warned him as Luffy sighed in relief and put it happily on his head.

"Have a good nap?" past Sanji asked as Luffy looked around the room.

"Hey, those pirates…?" Luffy asked in confusion, and it was clear he was trying to figure out how he got here.

"Well, I can tell that a lot's happened since he blacked out when he hit the water," Robin chuckled softly.

"They're gone now," memory Sanji answered, "All thanks to you."

"Me?" he asked in surprise.

"Yeah, and Gin asked me to tell you that he said he'll see you on the Grand Line," past Sanji said, looking back out at the ocean.

"He did?" Luffy asked in surprise, "To you?"

"No! To you!" Sanji yelled back as he climbed out the window to the balcony and walked to the railing.

"He really is so slow, why else would I tell him that?" current Sanji asked wearily as he followed his past self to stand with him, he never thought he'd be looking out from this window again. There was silence all around them for a moment before Luffy reminded him that he didn't have to be 'Chore Boy' anymore since he got Krieg out of here.

"That's the deal," memory Sanji confirmed for him.

"Hey, I was wondering…?" Luffy said but Sanji already guess what he was gonna say and beat him by telling him that his answer was still no, he wasn't going to become a pirate. That he was going to stay here at the Baratie until Zeff acknowledged him as a real cook.

"Was it really that important to you for Chef Zeff to tell you that?" Chopper asked.

"I think that everyone wants to hear from someone that they have come a long way," Sanji answered him softly. "Especially, if that person is the one who taught you everything you know and that your hard work's paid off. That you don't have to be considered an apprentice anymore."

Chopper thought that over and realized that he was right. He remembered how hard he worked with Doctorine… how she only ever praised him once during the long years that he worked with her. He never noticed it before, but he never forgot the words she said… when she told him that he had done a good job. He supposed he could understand what Sanji was saying here.

"So if Zeff told you that you were an amazing cook you would've left like that?" Usopp asked.

Sanji didn't answer, he just gazed ahead, lost in thoughts. Luffy sighed, his eyes overshadowed as he told him that he finally gave up. However, his words and his actions didn't match. He stretched his arm out to grab hold of past Sanji's collar and he was gasping at him to let go.

"He never could take no for an answer," Nami sighed with a smile. "I don't think it'll take anything less than a beating to get him to listen."

"And even then, that doesn't work," Sanji sighed. His past self was telling Luffy that he couldn't leave just yet, but that he did promise himself that one day he would go to the Grand Line. Luffy beamed as he stretched out to join him on the balcony. "Well, let's go right now!" he said.

"Yeah, why not?" asked Chopper eagerly.

"It just isn't the right time. Not yet…" he said, and watching it now, current Sanji realized just how pathetic that sounded. They continued to look out at the sea for a moment before his memory self said, "There is one place…" And without another word, he turned back to Luffy and asked, his face suddenly lighting up with exhilaration as he asked, "Say have you ever heard of All Blue?"

"No," Luffy answered bluntly.

"You've got to be kidding me!?" past Sanji asked, still never losing his smile. "That sea is a miracle!" Luffy's eyes widen as he went on and on about his dream of one day seeing the All Blue. "In the All Blue there are fish from the East Blue, the West Blue, the North Blue, and the South Blue," he said breathlessly, "That one stretch of ocean has it all! To us cooks it's a culinary dream come true! A place that fantastic has got to be on the Grand Line somewhere right?"

"Wow, I don't think I've seen you this happy when you aren't looking a pretty girl," Usopp said in surprise.

"Oh! I almost missed him up there," Brook said, looking up to the higher balconies, and spotting someone up there.

"Who?" asked Nami, glancing up as well and they all looked to see that Zeff was there watching them.

"You mean that old geezer was listening in the whole time?!" Sanji roared out furiously.

But Zeff was watching the whole thing with a small smile on his face, as if dreaming of the All Blue himself. Sanji was blushing a little at that. He didn't know what made him tell Luffy about his dream—perhaps it was because he knew that Luffy wouldn't laugh at him or tell him that it was impossible. After all, both of their dreams were considered to be unattainable. He didn't understand before this moment. But he did now. Luffy didn't let his dreams die here, and he wasn't gonna let his disappear either.

He just smiled as he watched his past self continue on for some time about his dreams of seeing the All Blue and what he would make once he got there. When Patty screamed out that lunch was served, the two decided to go down and get some as well. But they came before a surprising incident. First there wasn't any seating left and he and Luffy were forced to sit on the floor.

"What's wrong?" Zoro teased, "You afraid to wrinkle your suit?"

"You shut up!" Sanji yelled at him, "This was a restaurant for crying out loud and there wasn't any seats left? There was something up!"

But as they continued watching it, it got nasty when all the chefs kept going on about how they hated his food. It ended with a big fight with Zeff and Sanji before he went charging out.

"That's cold," Franky said, knowing how sensitive that Sanji was about his cooking skills. Just one insult was enough to earn a hard ass-kicking from him. But present-day Sanji didn't say a word here.

The only one who didn't have something to say about Sanji's cooking was Luffy, who was gulping it all down. "What's all the fuss about?" he asked, ladling himself more, "This soup's totally awesome!"

"All of us know the soup is good," Zeff said and Luffy looked up in surprise, as did the rest of the Straw Hats. Sanji in particular was listening hard to this part—he didn't hear it the first time and what he said next meant more to him than treasure.

"I know he's an outstanding chef. Everyone here on the Baratie does," Zeff said and Sanji felt a little watery-eyed at that. Not a single one of the other cooks disagreed, all of them nodding the same way and told him what they all thought.

"But I don't get it…" Chopper said in confusion, "They all said…?"

"They're a bunch of dumbasses," Sanji answered for him as Zeff went on.

"But that thick-skulled idiot wouldn't listen to us if we tried to reason with him," he said and Zoro smirked at that part. Luffy continued to enjoy the soup when Zeff made a surprising request. "Hey… listen. You were saying that you needed a cook for your ship right? Well, this isn't something I wanna be asking anyone but… would you mind taking that little brat along with ya? Take him to the Grand Line." He smiled, "That would be _best_ for him. The Grand Line is his dream."

Sanji smiled at that.

"It sure sounds like he really cares a lot about you, Sanji-san," Brook told him softly. "He wanted what was best for you…?"

"Yeah… I guess I know better than anyone that the old fossil's got a soft side in him somewhere," he admitted, his face mostly hidden by his bangs again. He knew this part… it was here that he remembered listening in. He had gone back to smash their heads in, letting them all know that he wasn't going to be pushed around and take trash-talking his food without a fight. But once he heard all this…?

"Geez boss, you sure made us put on a hell of a show," Patty said, looking close to laughing.

"Oh man," Carne laughed, "I was worried he was gonna figure it out cause of your bad acting!"

"It was amazing acting!" Chopper said softly.

Patty laughed, "Come on your acting was way worse than mine!"

"Well," Nami admitted, "I suppose heard a lot worse actors."

"I think they'd been practicing that for years," Sanji confessed, "And it was still bad."

"You seemed to believe it," Zoro smirked and Sanji responded with another kick, which he blocked with a sword.

"Would you get off my back?!" he yelled.

But their fight was interrupted when Luffy said something that made them all almost fall over—even the Straw Hats. "No way."

"What?!" Usopp yelled in a stunned voice.

"Now that's a surprise," Robin said smiling.

"You mean that he didn't want you to come along anymore?" Chopper asked but Sanji shook his head.

"But earlier you mentioned you needed a cook for your ship!" Zeff said loudly, and he was now sounding angry. "Just what are you trying to say? That he's suddenly not good enough for you?!"

"That's sweet," Nami said smiling and Sanji felt a warm feeling go through him at that. It was the first time that Zeff had ever even sounded like he defended his cooking skills.

"Oh, he's good," Luffy admitted, turning back to his food, "And I'd love it if he joined my crew and came with us." He swallowed and finished, "But it seems like he really wants to stay here and cook with all of you guys. You can ask me all you want but I'm just not gonna take him."

Zoro sighed. "And to think that you did come alone… just when we could've found ourselves a real cook."

"YOU SHUT UP!" Sanji yelled at him, "AT LEAST I DIDN'T NEED TO BE BRIBED INTO JOINING! OR THREATENED TO KILL ANYONE!"

Zoro's face suddenly turned angry. "What'd you say?"

"Come on!" Franky said, getting between them both. "Do you guys have to go into this every few minutes?"

"Why not?" demanded Sanji hotly.

"Look," Robin interrupted, turning their attention back to the scene.

"So you're saying you can't agree to it unless he tells you himself," Zeff said, playing with his mustache. "Is that right?"

"That's right," Luffy said before he held out his plate and asked for more food.

Zeff thought it over before he said, "Well, I suppose that's fair enough. But who knows if that hard-headed little brat will ever agree to join up with ya."

"Yeah," Patty added, "Once that guy makes up his mind there's nothing anybody can do to change it."

"What made you decide to come?" Usopp asked him as Franky succeeded in getting Sanji and Zoro apart.

"Well," Sanji said to him, trying to compose himself, "Part of the answer is about to coming crashing through that door." And no sooner did he said that when something came with a CRASH right through the wall.

"What the hell?" Franky yelled out as Usopp and Chopper both scrambled out of the way.

"That's kinda what was going through my mind too," Sanji confessed. Through the dust they saw that it was a large Panshark with Yosaku hanging from his mouth, and with past Sanji underneath them.

"Now there's something you don't see every day," Nami said, a large sweatdrop over her head.

"So _that's_ what happened to him," Zoro said in surprise, he wondered how Yosaku made it back to get Luffy.

"Yeah," Usopp said thinking back. "Once they realized where you were heading Nami, Yosaku said he was going to go back and get Luffy to help."

"How'd he get in that thing's mouth?" Brook asked fascinated and the two just shrugged.

"He just jumped overboard and disappeared," Zoro said shaking his head. "Man, I'd love to hear what happened there."

After they pulled Yosaku out of the thing's mouth, it went back to the water and took off as they heard what happened. They had Yosaku with a blanket and he explained that though they weren't able to catch up to Nami, they figured out where she was heading. But Yosaku also added that he came back here to get Luffy, explaining that they needed his help because the place they were going to could mean certain death for them all.

"Nami-san?" Brook asked, but Nami shook her head, silently letting him know that he was soon to find out. She wasn't going to be looking forward to the next few memories.

"Alright," Luffy said, "I don't really get it… but I got it!"

Memory Sanji was leaning against the railing outside as the two got up and walked past, going to get ready to leave. But as soon as Luffy walked past him, he said to wait. "You're dream is foolish," he said when Luffy did stop to listen, "But then again… so is mine."

Luffy didn't look at him as Sanji looked up to the sky. "Now's as good a time as any. Why not start my quest right now?"

"So this is…?" Brook asked him as Sanji nodded, smiling a little.

"Yeah," he confessed, "I was through dreaming. I was finally ready to leave."

"So I guess that their act worked?" Franky asked with a laugh.

"Not quite," he answered with his eyes rolling.

"Sanji?" Luffy asked, turning his head slightly.

Pushing himself off the banister memory Sanji looked at him and said, "I'll be joining your little crew on your journey to be King of the Pirates."

"I still don't get what I was thinking here," he laughed. "I must've been crazy joining such a crazy crew."

"And this is where you officially join!" Chopper cried out happily.

Luffy turned to stare at him as Sanji finished up, "You hear me? I wanna be the cook on your ship!" they sized each other up as he finished, "Alright? Whadda say?"

A big grin appeared on his face and he screamed out, "YEAH! OF COURSE!" He and Yosaku were both jumping around, dancing and singing happily as Sanji looked up at the cooks.

"Are you guys happy now or what?" he asked grumpily, but he was smirking when he saw their sour expressions, "Sorry, really. I'll leave now."

Patty snorted and said that he wanted to throw him out himself for up and abandoning them.

"I'm especially sorry for making the lot of you resort to bad acting," past Sanji told him.

"So you _did_ know," Usopp said in revelation.

"Actually," Sanji confessed, "I overheard some of the things they said in here."

"Hey wait!" Patty yelled, "How'd you know?"

"You could've just let them believe that their act did the trick," Robin offered with a giggle.

"Sorry, but I just couldn't stand anymore of that crud-bad acting," he laughed, "_If_ you wanna call it acting in the first place."

"I heard everything, you bunch of jerks," past Sanji answered, now turning to glare at Zeff. "Was stomping on my pride the best plan you could come up with? Was it? You damn geezer."

"Every little thing has to be a fight with you!" Patty yelled, holding up a fist, "I'm sick-n-tired of it! Bring it on!"

"You were getting ready to leave, but you weren't going to go without one more argument?" Nami asked him knowingly.

"Just a little something to remember me by," he offered brightly.

But Zeff was holding Patty back as he looked to Sanji. "I have never liked children. As a matter of fact I _hate_ children. There wasn't a day passed that I didn't regret letting a useless little brat like you live Sanji."

"Harsh," Brook winced.

"Oh, I'm sure that he didn't mean that," Robin answered. "I guess that this was just his way of saying that he was glad he was finally leaving or something like that?"

"I guess so," current Sanji said, "And besides, if he didn't save me, he wouldn't have had me to kick around for all these years. What fun would he have had here?"

"Fine by me you rotten old man," past Sanji smirked back, "Enjoy the rest of your miserable life."

"You can really feel the love here," Zoro said, rolling his eye.

"Now… we all ways of letting others know we care," Sanji said as he watched himself leave with Luffy and Yosaku. He told them that he was going to get his stuff and that he would meet up with them later. And the next few memories were of them following Luffy around and packing up food, mostly meat, and putting it all on a nice boat that they were going to take it to find the others—they were all a little surprised when Zeff had offered him his logbook however.

"And he wasn't going to give it to someone who was threatening to take his restaurant," Brook said softly.

"Because he knew that Luffy would never abuse what was written in it," Sanji told him simply. But none of them were the least bit surprised when Luffy had refused, and caused Zeff to smirk again and left.

Soon, with everyone on board, Luffy and Yosaku were waiting with all the other cooks outside on the fins—that was patched together rather sloppily.

"So this is where you're officially leaving?" Nami asked and Sanji merely nodded as they all waited for his past self to appear.

"What was taking you so long crud cook?" Zoro asked.

"I was just taking one last look around," he snapped back. Finally, he appeared in the doorway with his his knives in his case and a sack over his shoulder. He stood there for a minute in the doorway, as if realizing that this was all for real, he slowly walked forward. But Patty and Carne jumped him, ready to give him a beating… of course with two kicks, Sanji took them out.

"Really guys that was just dumb," a chef said to them as they bled on the deck and memory Sanji continued on as if no one interrupted him.

"Couldn't have said that better myself," Nami said exasperatedly as the others laughed. "Just what was the point of that?"

"They're way of sending him off?" suggested Zoro.

It was silent after that as memory Sanji walked with all the cooks on either side of him—only the sounds of his footsteps and the waves could be heard. It was as if he was about to leave for a dangerous war and might never come back. Though, thinking about it, that wasn't impossible. He reached the boat and said, without ever looking back, "Let's get going."

"You don't need to say goodbye?" Luffy asked a little surprise. But Sanji smiled as he said it was fine; and was about to get in when Zeff called out behind him.

"Sanji," he said from the upper balcony, "Take care of yourself ok?"

Both Sanji's were standing there frozen at those words. Even after all this time, those words seemed to have echoed inside him. Though those simple words wouldn't mean much to others, to Sanji, those words meant so much… Zeff, a man who usually belittled him one way or another, asked him to take care of himself.

He was fighting the tears all over again, but his past self was quickly breaking down as an understanding smile appeared on Luffy's face.

"Sanji-san?" Brook asked softly but past Sanji couldn't hold it in anymore.

"CHEF ZEEEEEFFFFFFF!" he screamed out and to their astonishment he spun around and fell to his knees, his forehead touching the Baratie's deck. He was so completely moved by what Zeff said, that he just couldn't hold it in. "Thanks you geezer! I'll never forget your kindness! I owe my life to you old man… so thank you!"

They were all looking from past to present Sanji. Never once had they seen him break down like this—if you don't count seeing the mermaids.

"So that's what he meant when Luffy said you were crying harder at Fishman Island than when you left," Usopp said, remembering Sanji's reaction to arriving at Mermaid Cove.

"I had to say it," Sanji said softly. "Thanks to him… I'm alive and kicking."

"What a shame," Zoro added softly, remembering that Sanji said those words to him earlier. But now tears had appeared in Zeff's eyes. Soon all the other chefs were crying as well, saying how much they were gonna miss him. There wasn't a dry eye around and Sanji in the memory was smiling through his tears.

"Damn words," Zeff said, his eyes bloodshot as he rubbed them, "Real men should part without a word, let alone tears."

"But this warm the heart and soul," Brook said happily as they watched them all try and mop up their feelings and Sanji finally stepped onto the boat.

"LET'S GO! SET SAIL!" Luffy hollered and they pushed off, with Sanji waving to them all, still crying the whole way.

"I will see you again!" he promised them. "I'll come back someday!"

The whole time the chefs waved him off, yelling they wished him good luck and that they would miss him. Current Sanji couldn't hide back his tears as he watched—he promised that he would go back someday—once he found the All Blue… and he will. Once he fulfilled his dream, he would return and show them just how far he's come since then. With an emotional Baratie behind, they watched the three head off as the chefs waving him off even after he was out of their sights.

***Luffy***

Some time had passed since the Straw Hats were forced back out into the open air, but the whole time Luffy had been sitting beside Sabo and Ace as he talked eagerly about all the adventures that he went on since he left home. He told them all about how they went over mountains, flew to Sky Island, invaded Enies Lobby, fighting zombies at Thriller Bark, and anything else he could think of.

"And we just got back from visiting Jinbe, Hatchi, and Camie on Fishman Island!" he finished excitedly, "It was so cool going down there! It was one heck of an adventure just getting there!"

His two brothers just sat there and listened, both had smiles on their faces as Luffy went into more stories about all the people he's met and, of course, his crew. But he finally noticed something different. "Sabo…?" he asked, "How could you're older than me now?"

Sabo laughed. "Finally noticed?" he asked brightly. "I was beginning to wonder if you'd figure it out… I'm this age because I wanted to be. Come on… wouldn't it be strange to speak to your _older_ brother if you were taller than?"

Luffy thought it over before said, "Oh, I get it."

"No you don't," Ace finished and they all laughed.

"I really want you both to meet my crew!" Luffy said eagerly, excitement going throughout his whole body at the thought. "Ace, you already met a lot of them, but I want you to meet Robin, Franky, and Brook now! And Sabo, you need to see them all!"

The two shared a very strange look with each other and Luffy blinked. "What? You don't want to meet them?"

"We wish we could," Sabo said, "But I'm afraid that things aren't that simple."

"What do you mean?" Luffy asked confused as his brothers smirked wider at him.

"Well, that's hard to explain," Ace said still grinning, "And I don't think that we have time to talk about it. After all, we're gonna have to send you back soon."

"Not yet!" Luffy cried out desperately. "We only just got to see each other again! And you want me to go?!"

"It's for the best Luffy," Sabo answered him. "You can't stay here with us forever. Right now, your crew's trying to find you."

Luffy blinked as it all came back to him. "Oh, right. They were sleeping when I was brought here. You're saying they're ok?"

"Yes," Ace answered, "They're lost on the island right now… they're ah… doing a job for me. So until they get it done, you get to stay here. But as soon as they're finished, you _have_ to go back."

"But…" Luffy whined but Ace silenced him with a look.

"None of that now," he said and Luffy sighed.

"Can't you both come with me?" he asked.

Both brothers shook their heads. "We already talked about that Luffy," Ace said firmly and Luffy turned sad.

"I know…" he answered, "but it doesn't mean that I have to like it."

"We know," Sabo sighed, as he looked up to their old hideout. "But there's something that we can do to help make you feel better."

"What?" Luffy asked in surprise.

"It's been years since you and I had a real fight," Ace said with a wicked grin. "How about we throw down right now?"

Luffy blinked in surprise. "You and me… fight?"

"One last fight… just you and me," Ace grinned as Sabo smirked between them. "You had two years of training haven't you? I want to see just how far you've come. Let's see which one of us is stronger. You once said that you would one day surpass even me right?" He stood up, his arms folded as he asked, "How about we prove it once and for all?"

Luffy blinked at him. "You mean it?" he asked, as if afraid he heard wrong.

"You did say that," Sabo agreed. "You said that one day you will be stronger than both of us right? I think it's about time you prove it."

"This will be the last fight that we ever have," Ace said decidedly, "We will settle it here and no matter the outcome, it will be final. We will get to see who's the strongest! You up to it?"

Luffy couldn't believe his ears. This was what he wanted more than anything. A wide grin appeared on his face. "You're on!"

**(So how was this SUUUUPPPPPPEEEERRRR long chapter? So now we finished up with Sanji's mini-arc, and now we will be moving on to Arlong Park for Nami. These chapters are becoming difficult to write, especially the parts where I try to tell how the current versions of the Straw Hats are feeling as they watch this. I hope that you feel that I did it with this chapter.)**


	18. The Thief with a Heart of Gold

**Chapter 18: The Thief with a Heart of Gold**

"That pulls at the heartstrings," Franky cried out, he couldn't remember every crying more as he did tonight and wringing out the soaked handkerchief, "Those cooks weren't ashamed to cry. You could feel the love there as they waved you off, Sanji!"

"Oh, shut up," Sanji said, trying to wipe away his own tears before the noticed.

"So they really did care about you all along!" Chopper said happily, also having a few stray tears on his cheeks.

"Yes, they just didn't know how to come out and say it to your face," Robin reminded him softly, smiling brightly as she looked up to the feeble glow of the moon as she stepped out onto the grassy fields and enjoyed the soft breeze, glad to be out of that memory for the moment. "It's funny…" she went on, almost to herself, "How the things we want to say the most are actually the things that are the most difficult to say."

"It's almost sad when you put it like that," Nami said softly, thinking it all over. There were so many things that she wanted to say to so many people but she was never able to say it. Especially when it came to… her mother…

She stared up at the sky and stared at the twinkling stars—wondering.

Sanji, however, just watched the smoke from the cigarette drift off with the wind, thinking about Zeff and the other cooks. He wondered how they were all doing right now. He hoped that they were all still alive and breathing—and didn't burn the ship down. He wanted to go back someday and really show off how strong he had become.

He smiled to himself. He could show off all the cooking skills he learned since coming here… and he was sure that even Zeff would be impressed when they see his Sky Walk.

All too soon the black sky was replaced with a sunny day. He sighed, wondering just when this 'monster' would show up so that they could kick its ass. They were all pilled in the familiar boat and Luffy was running around, looking at everything—though there wasn't anything but water for miles around.

Yosaku and past Sanji were near the front of the ship and resting there as Luffy jumped around.

"What's this?" Brook asked looking around.

"This was where we took off towards Nami-san's village," Sanji said, thinking it over.

"You sure took your sweet time getting there," Zoro told him irritably.

"Hey, you should just be happy we came at all to save your lousy ass!" Sanji snapped at him.

Finally, past Sanji yelled at Luffy to calm down. Still excited, he came over to sit at the very front of the boat and turned to Yosaku, "So… are we getting close to where Nami is? You know… the island?"

"So we get to see your island, Nami?" Chopper asked her.

Nami didn't answer right away as she looked down, feeling a little blue. While it would be wonderful to see her home again, she had mixed feelings about it all. She wasn't sure she was going to like to see herself here.

Suddenly, Yosaku slammed his hand down on his knee, and got their attention. Pointing an accusing finger at him he yelled out, "You're way to naïve and way too young! Don't you get it? Don't you realize every second that passes brings us closer to the infamous Arlong?!"

"Arlong?" Chopper repeated before he blinked in surprise, "Isn't that the Fishman that Jimbei talked about? The ones that you guys stopped?"

"Yeah," Sanji said, looking over to Nami. "Nami-swan?" he asked in a gentle voice.

"I'll be fine," she answered firmly. Those who weren't aware of the whole situation here always knew that there had been issues between Nami and the Fishmen—but they weren't entirely sure just what they were about. Robin, Chopper, Brook, and Franky were all looking at each other nervously, wondering just what kind of burden that Nami had been carrying around all this time.

The whole time they wondered, Yosaku spoke to Sanji and Luffy that, due to Nami's suspicious behavior being connected to their copy of Arlong's wanted poster, he and Johnny suspected that there had to be a connection between them.

Of course Luffy and Sanji didn't seem at all concerned as Luffy asked for food.

"The first of many times," Sanji laughed at the thought. He wished he could warn his past self to get used to that line because he was going to hear it very often. However Yosaku looked ready to fall over at how clueless they were and went on to yell about everything he knew about Arlong. But past Sanji was starting to swoon at the idea of mermaids and Luffy drew bad drawings of what he thought Fishmen looked like.

"I forgot just how awful an artist Luffy is," Robin sighed, but she looked deeply amused at the idea. Yosaku was getting frustrated and told them all about the Seven Warlords and mentioned Mihawk and Jimbei and just how dangerous they were.

"So that's what you meant," Nami said, looking at Sanji. "You mentioned that before…?"

"Yeah," Sanji agreed, "Like I said… we first heard about Jimbe just before we got to your island. Up till we actually met the guy, I always believed that he was the one pulling the strings behind that Arlong bastard."

"Thank goodness he wasn't," Nami sighed in relief. She had really grown to like Jimbei… and if he was Luffy's friend, she just couldn't bring herself to hate him. He was nothing like Arlong and that was a huge weight off her shoulders and she was looking forward to the day that he joined them.

"Arlong has taken control of twenty towns since coming to the East Blue," Yosaku said with fear in his voice. "His strength easily surpasses anyone you've encountered, including Don Krieg! He's devastating!"

"Wow," Chopper gulped nervously, "He sounds bad."

"Believe me," Nami said darkly, "He _is_ bad."

But past Sanji couldn't understand why Nami would go after him by herself—which Yosaku responded that she was trying to get his bounty—with Sanji now fantasying about her being a mermaid.

"In your dreams," Nami told him in deep annoyance as the others laughed. Sanji just sighed dreamily, even now, he'd give _anything_ to see that. Memory Sanji went to get food done as Luffy said they would worry about it when they got there.

"That's just his motto," Zoro said with a shrug, "adventure now, worry later…"

"All the trouble that caused us," Usopp sighed tiredly as his stomach roared with hunger. He put his hand on his belly and moaned out miserably. What he wouldn't give for some of that food…?

They continued watching as past Sanji made their food in no time at all and soon they were forced to watch them all eat.

"Aw man, this is torture!" Franky whined out. "I'd kill for some…" but then he blinked in realization and opened his stomach up to get a bottle of cola.

"WHAT?!" Usopp cried enviously as Franky drank it down, "Damn, I wish I was you!"

"Yep!" he grinned at him, "I'm SUUUUUPPPPPPPEEEEEERRRRRR!"

The women shared raised eyebrows as Chopper went all sparkly eyes at him. But as the three were sitting down to really enjoy their food, there was a rumble beneath them.

"What's that?" Robin asked curiously as they heard what sounded like a moo beneath the waves.

"Don't tell me," Nami said startled.

The sea rose up on the side of the boat, and through the giant wave were a pair of horns…

"AAAAAHHHHHHHHH!" screamed Usopp, "IT'S A SEA MONSTER! WE'RE ALL GONNA DIE!"

"Would you relax?" Zoro asked in annoyance when the face appeared through the water and Usopp stopped screaming at once. Past Sanji looked overboard to see a giant sea cow rising up out of the sea. He had a big round nose with a gold nose ring, cow-esque face and horns, green spots throughout his body, with a great big seal-like body.

"IT'S THAT GIANT COW!" Chopper yelled recognizing the creature at once.

"Awwww," Robin cooed, "He's sorta cute…"

"I recognize that!" Brook cried out, pointing at it, "That's the same monster that we saw going to Fishman Island! Or maybe…? It could be? I'm not sure anymore, Yohohoho."

"It is," Nami confirmed, "It's Mohmoo!"

"Wait, you know that thing?" Franky asked her and she nodded.

"Yes," she answered, "I guess you can say he was the Arlong Pirate's mascot. He's really not that bad…"

"What does he want?" Usopp asked, calming down. He found it kinda hard to really be afraid of something that looked like an oversized cow.

"He's hungry," Chopper said, listening to the mooing sounds that it was making. "He smelled your food Sanji and he wanted some.

"Well, at least he has good taste," Sanji said smugly.

"Is it really a good thing to know that the only thing that'll eat your food is a giant sea monster?" Zoro asked him and Sanji looked ready to kill as he turned his eyes—that were practically burning holes in him.

"You wanna say that again?" he dared.

"Just the truth pal," he answered as Yosaku screamed in panic as Luffy and past Sanji looked at it in mild curiosity. But when he pointed out that he wanted their food, Luffy panicked and threw a punch at him, screaming out, "Bad Sea Cow! Stay away from our food!"

"You didn't have to do that!" Chopper yelled at him as the sea cow mooed in anger and pain. "You didn't have to do that did you Luffy?"

Past Sanji seemed to agree with him and told them off as he explained that all the cow wanted was food. He went to try to feed him, but as soon as Mohmoo opened his mouth, Sanji kicked it so hard that he was thrown backwards into the sea and Chopper screamed again.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING? DAMN JERK!" Yosaku bellowed at him furiously.

"I knew I liked Yosaku," Zoro said coolly.

"He was gonna eat me with the plate, what could I do?" past Sanji asked casually, one leg up on the side of the boat, clearly waiting for it to come back up.

"No wonder that thing was so scared when it saw you and Luffy," Usopp said with sweatdrop as he thought back to when he first saw the Sea Cow. He couldn't help but feel sorry for it.

"WHY ARE YOU ALL HURTING HIM?!" demanded Chopper.

"Didn't you hear me?" Sanji asked, "He was going to eat me too! What? You wanted me to just stand there and eaten?"

"Would've done us a favor," Zoro said, but his voice was drowned out when Mohmoo roared in fury, falling towards them, but Sanji ran up the mast and kicked him so hard in the neck that it hit the ocean—out cold. And to add insult to injury, Sanji and Luffy sat back down at the table to finish their food.

"You guys are insane," Yosaku whispered, staring at them with admiration and horror.

"Would've been a waste of good food," Sanji said causally. Soon enough, the boys finished their meal and tied a rope around Mohmoo's horns once he woke up tearfully.

"ONWARDS COW!" Luffy cried out, and terrified, Mohmoo set off.

"So you guys did have experience getting a giant monster to pull your ship?" Franky laughed as he remembered how Luffy wanted to find a monster to pull the Sunny.

"I suppose," Sanji shrugged, and soon they were almost flying across the water as Mohmoo pulled them. "But the landing was much to be desired."

"Landing?" repeated Brook in confusion. But they just flew along the water and Sanji said tiredly, "I'm sure you'll find out soon enough," he said. And he was right. Only fifteen minutes later they spotted land in the distance.

Nami stared at it, suddenly having violent flashbacks of this place that felt like someone was beating the inside of her head with a hammer. As she tried to master the surge of emotion inside her, Luffy jumped to the bow of the ship, and enjoyed the ride—yelling out that he could see Arlong Park from here to the other two.

"Hey, that really does look like Sabaody Park!" Franky yelled, shielding his eyes from the sun to look at it.

"Yes, and I guess you can say it's very similar to it," Nami said so quietly that they hardly heard her over the noise that Mohmoo was making. "This is Arlong Park…"

This building, several stories high and Arlong's Jolly Roger at the top, was conspicuously placed at the coast to show that they had no fear of the law and where the pool on the outside was linked to the outer seas, for Mohmoo to go in and out of, with a pair of steel gates that kept it closed. The building itself was modeled after the main building in Sabaody Park… but her eyes were focused only on the left window at the top floor… this place reflected the cruelty of Sabaody Archipelago's slave-trade.

"Nami?" Robin asked softly and Nami blinked in surprise. She hadn't realized that she was shaking. She shook her head hard before she forced a smile.

"It's alright…" she told her. "It's just… this place brings back a lot of bad memories."

She smiled again as she looked on. "It's part of a past that I prefer not to think about. But… it's all history. I'm fine. I mean, ever since we started jumping through Luffy's memories, I guess I always knew that we'd see this again."

"But ah… what exactly is this place?" Chopper asked quietly.

She didn't answer as she watched it. She had thought she'd never see this terrible building again… but—she looked down at her feet. She wasn't looking forward to the idea of seeing Arlong again… however, she reminded herself that she would get to see this place get destroyed a second time.

Feeling a little comforted by that she glanced back up as Luffy yelled excitedly from the front, and yelled at Mohmoo to pick up the pace.

"I feel sorry for it," Yosaku said with his hand on his chin. "Sanji's kick must've really taken its toll."

"I'll say," Usopp said as the cow cried.

"Oh well," present Sanji shrugged in bored way. "It got us here quickly didn't it? The sooner the better."

Mohmoo suddenly began to turn away from Arlong Park and headed more to the right of it.

"Not that way!" Luffy yelled as he pointed back to the building, "Your other left! To the building, stupid!"

"He's one to call someone else stupid," current Sanji sighed.

Mohmoo ignored him and kept going in the wrong direction as Luffy continued to laugh in excitement as they headed straight for the shoreline. Present Sanji suddenly froze. "Oh, no…" he said, "This is it…?"

"What is, Sanji-san?" Brook asked curiously as they almost reached the shore.

"Just brace yourselves," Sanji said, getting ready, "I think this is the first time I've ever been on a flying ship."

"Flying…?" Robin began, but when Mohmoo crashed into the shore—they found out. They hit it with such force that when the Sea Cow hit, it knocked itself out and launched the little boat right into the air so that it was sent soaring across the island.

"AWESOME!" Chopper cried out as they flew over the thick forests and landscapes, the wind whipping past them.

"Ohhhh! It's almost like we're flying!" Luffy exclaimed happily.

"WE ARE FLYING YOU MORON!" past Sanji yelled as he and Yosaku clung on.

"So that's what happened," Zoro said bitterly, a vein standing out on his forehead as he remembered what happened next.

"Too bad we won't be flying for much longer," Robin said, looking over the side of the boat to see the trees getting closer and closer. "I hope that you don't end up crashing and breaking bones."

"Why Robin?" whispered Usopp tearfully, "Why are you always doing this?"

"NO WE'RE FALLING!" Yosaku screamed. Luffy gave a scream of delight as they descended into the forest and started to slide across the ground like a skate would on ice. "Landing successful!" Luffy cried happily.

"Don't know why he'd think that," Franky said, looking around. But Luffy suddenly stopped laughing and was shouting out, "HEY ZORO!"

"Oh no," Zoro groaned, knowing just what was going to come. And there he was. His past self was standing there staring at them with a gapping mouth.

"ZORO GET OUT OF THE WAY!" Chopper screamed, but too late. The boat crashed into him like how the Rocketman once crashed into Franky back at Enies Lobby. The pain didn't last long however as they finally burst through the trees, over some wetlands and they finally crashed right into a high cliff, destroying the boat.

Everyone stared at that.

"Dude…" Franky whispered staring at Zoro, who was looking angry. "Did they just run you over?"

"I guess you were just in the wrong place at the wrong time," Robin stated

But Sanji was roaring with laugher, holding onto his stomach as he cramped up. "God! How could I forget that? I love that! That had to hurt!"

"I'm going to cut you up later," Zoro promised threateningly as the past selves now tried to get out of the wreckage.

"And what a waste of a perfectly good ship," Franky sighed sadly.

"But if you're going to make an entrance, I can't think of one to grab your attention more," Robin giggled. "Too bad that no one else saw it."

As the smoke and dust of the crash disappeared, Luffy's voice was calling out, "Awesome! We're here guys!"

After dusting off his hat, he was standing up and looking around eagerly as a muffled voice beneath the boards. "WHAT THE HELL…" past Zoro forced the boards off him, screaming out at them all, "WERE YOU DOING?!"

"I thought it was obvious," Brook laughed happily as they laughed at past Zoro's state.

"Now I know what happened," Zoro said shaking his head, that didn't make it any better. "But really… Luffy's the only person I know who can do something like that."

"What do you mean?" Luffy asked innocently as he stood up. Sanji was still sitting on a crate, also a mess, but didn't seem to have moved from his seat—Yosaku on the other hand was in the background, his legs up in the air as the rest of him was buried in the debris. "We're here to pick up Nami, duh," Luffy went on as if it was obvious. "How come you haven't found her yet?" He paused in thought as if he just remembered something, "Oh yeah, and what about Usopp and Johnny?"

"Funny that me and Johnny were like side notes," Usopp sighed in annoyance.

But past Zoro's eyes suddenly widen as the mention of Usopp. "Usopp!" he exclaimed as he stood up. "Oh no! Come on! We gotta hurry!" He started to run off.

"Why? What's wrong?" Luffy asked after him.

"That dumbass was caught by Arlong," he explained quickly. "We gotta hurry before they kill him!"

"What?" Brook said in worry, "You were captured, Usopp-san?"

"Yeah," Usopp answered, remembering what happened now before he started to lie, "But you see… I actually snuck into Arlong Park and was planning to rescue Nami all by myself. Really, I could've escaped any time that I…"

"He's already dead," a familiar voice stated for them. Jumping at the voice, they looked up in time to see Johnny slowly coming towards them. He was looking tired and out of breath as tears fell from his eyes.

"What!?" Zoro exclaimed as he came towards them.

"Yeah, Usopp's right here!" Chopper added, pointing to their Usopp.

"We're… too late," Johnny continued numbly as he fell to his knees in front of them, "Big Bro Usopp is dead."

"What's he talking about?" Franky asked in confusion, looking up at Usopp. "Why's he lying about something like that? It's not funny."

"He's not actually lying," Usopp told him, "Because I guess it must've looked like she killed me."

"Who did?" Robin asked softly.

But Johnny answered that as he punched the ground bitterly and cried out, "Nami… murdered him!"

They all stared at him as Chopper and Brook screamed at the thought.

"I didn't really do it!" Nami yelled at them, "I had to make it look like I killed him!"

"What?" Franky asked, not getting it. He wasn't the only one…

"You can't be serious!" Yosaku cried out.

But it was Luffy who was looking furious, shouting out, "That's a lie!"

"Yeah, it's true!" Johnny exclaimed as he fell back to the ground and sat cross-legged. "She was a traitor all along! She's been winning Arlong's favor so she could have the treasure buried in Cocoyashi Village all for herself!" he slammed his hand on the ground, "That woman's just a cold-hearted killer! She won't stop till she gets what she wants! Nami had us fooled the entire…"

"Nami?" Robin asked softly, looking to her, "Why do I get the feeling that's not true at all?"

Her eyes were hidden behind her eyes as she answered, "Because it isn't. Parts of it are true… but believe me… I never wanted to get anyone else killed because of me."

"Anyone else?" Brook repeated to himself quietly.

But Luffy wouldn't hear any more of it. He charge again and screamed out that Johnny was a liar as he grabbed him by his collar and shook him so violently that he even let his hat fall off. "Say another word and you'll regret it!"

Startled, Nami looked up at him. How could he be standing up for her like this? Johnny was a friend to him as well, but to threaten to hurt him if he insulted her? Why would he…?

"Easy Luffy, this has nothing to do with Johnny," past Zoro said in a calm voice.

Johnny turned his head. "Go on believe whatever you want. But I know what I saw! NAMI KILLED BIG BRO USOPP!"

"Shut your mouth!" Luffy yelled as he shook Johnny again, refusing to believe anything he said. "Never in a million years would Nami kill Usopp! She wouldn't do that to her friends!"

"Well, he's right about that," Nami said, tears starting to come to her eyes, truly touched by his defense of her. As much as she loved money however… she'd never sell out a friend when they had done so much for her. It was her fault that he was there any way! Faking Usopp's death was the only way she could get them both out of that mess. Though the long-nosed liar did get on her nerves, she could never just stand back and let him get himself killed.

"But… but I SAW it!" Johnny stammered out as Luffy looked like he was ready to throw a punch. But then another familiar voice spoke up in a contemptuous way. "What was that about friends, Luffy?"

They looked up to see past Nami was standing on the road. Current Nami was staring at her as she looked at them all. She had changed into a green spotted shirt and was now sporting a different tattoo on her shoulder. Instead of the graceful one she now wore, it was of a saw-nosed shark turned to the left with the tail curving inward. Around the shark is a semi-oval with three curves emitting from it.

Seeing that disgusting mark on her skin made the present-day Nami shiver and she reached up to touch the new tattoo—trying to remind herself that this part of her is dead. That she doesn't need to worry about it anymore. But it was hard to do that as she watched herself with her staff in her hands, arms folded, and staring at them all as if they were strangers who were bugging her.

"Nami!" Luffy exclaimed in surprise as he dropped Johnny, calming down almost at once.

She didn't answer for a moment as her eyes narrowed coldly—and they all had their eyes widen in surprise. That cold look in her eyes was the exact same look that Ace had when he first met Luffy. "What are you doing here?" she asked, her voice bored, as if she couldn't care less for the answer.

"What are we doing here? You're our friend," Luffy said in surprise, "We came to get you." He picked up his hat, as she just jeered at him.

"What a pest," she said.

"Nami?" Chopper asked softly, never seeing her act like this before. She was completely different from before.

Nami didn't say anything for a moment. "He _is_ a pest," she said softly, before she smiled, "But I'm glad for that."

"Nami-san, what is going on here?" Brook asked, not liking this.

"Nami?" Luffy questioned, also wondering as she spoke in the same cold voice.

"Friends, huh? Don't make me laugh. You're just pathetic enough to deserve each other," she said with a sneer that make her look quite unlike herself.

"Damn you! You killed him! I watched you do it!" Johnny yelled angrily, pointing a shaking finger at her, "And now… Big Bro Usopp is gone!"

"Yep that's right. So why don't you kill me get your revenge?" Nami said without batting an eye.

"Wait what?" Franky asked startled, "What's going on?"

"Yeah, if you just pretended to kill him why didn't you tell them that?" Chopper asked her as she shook her head.

"I had my reasons," she answered softly. She wanted to get them to hate her so that they'd leave her alone. That if they thought that she betrayed them that they would leave and not have to get hurt because of her.

"What!?" gasped Johnny, who seemed stunned that she answered him so causally.

"Word to the wise, fellas," she said sarcastically, "Because of your _friend's_ stupidity," she looked to Zoro and rolled her eyes and explained, "Arlong is preparing to kill Zoro along with his entire crew. And I don't care about monstrously strong you guys think you are, you're no match for the real monsters," she played with the staff on her shoulder and that was when they all noticed the thick bandage around her hand, "I promise you, you stay on this island, you will die."

Robin however had gently put her hands on their Nami's shoulders in a comforting way, and Nami leaned into her friend's touch. She didn't say anything as she watched, wishing that she had asked them for help sooner… but she had been so sure that she could do it on her own, that she didn't want to ask anyone else for help.

"So you have a choice to make between life and death," past Nami finally finished as Zoro was now growling angrily at her.

"Did anyone else feel the temperature go down?" Usopp asked with a gulp, having not see or heard about this. It was no wonder that they all thought she killed him… everything she was saying was so cold and callous that he almost believed it and he knew better than anyone what happened.

Past Sanji on the other hand was looking lovestruck once again and cried out, "Her heartless face is so hot." He waved his arms excitedly as he swooned, "Hi Nami, it's me Sanji! Let's run away together!"

"And I still have that offer for you my dear," he said and she rolled her eyes at him before telling him to shut up.

"You can always hand it to Sanji to lighten the mood though," Usopp said to Chopper who sighed in agreement.

"Can it, Romeo! This isn't the time or place for that!" past Zoro yelled in annoyance at him.

"Excuse me!?" past Sanji challenged. "Love is like a hurricane! So back off!" But past Zoro was no longer listening as he turned his back to him and looked directly at Nami, something that ticked him off. "Hey! Look at me when I'm talking to you!"

"Awww, this must bring back memories for you both," Robin teased, "Your first fight."

"Yeah, the first of countless," Nami sighed tiredly as the memory Zoro demanded to know where Usopp was.

"With the fishes," she answered and some of the crew shivered at that.

"You're really scaring me here sis," Franky said as past Zoro seemed to lose his temper.

"Damn it!" he yelled as he pulled out his one sword, "Cut the crap!"

He looked ready to attack her, but Sanji stood in the way and Zoro had to dodge the kick aimed at his face. "How sad, a swordsman attacking a lady?" he asked him coldly.

"What if she had killed him you idiot?" current Zoro snapped at current Sanji. "What if she's an enemy and trying to kill you?"

"If that happens I accept it without any thought," he said firmly. "I rather die than strike a lady!"

"Wow, Sanji!" Chopper said in amazement as he looked up at him.

"Again, that chivalry of his will get him into trouble," Nami sighed, remembering Enies Lobby.

"That's dumb," Zoro said to him.

"It's how I was raise!" Sanji snapped back, "I was brought up to never harm a woman! Even if my life is on the line, I just can't bring myself to strike!"

"Idiot!" past Zoro growled at past Sanji, and they all looked up, "Can't you see what's happening here? You're starting to piss me off!"

"And it won't be for the last time," Zoro added darkly as memory Sanji laughed. "If someone stopped me that easily, I'd be mad too."

"I forgot you said that," Zoro growled at him.

"Just speaking the truth," he smirked back and suddenly the two were fighting, swords and kicks flying off.

"What?" past Zoro demanded hotly, "You… should watch your mouth!"

"I'll say whatever I want, bastard," Sanji growled right back, and it looked like they were going to have a fight very similar to the one happening behind all the other Straw Hats. They did their best to ignore the two idiots in the background as Yosaku was now trying to get them to stop their memory version from fighting. "Big Bro's! We're all in this together ok?" he yelled, "This is no time to fight!"

"At least someone's showing some common sense," Usopp answered coolly.

"Your pal's right," past Nami agreed darkly, "Now quit you're bickering and leave while you still can. You outsiders have no right to butt into this island's affairs. Don't you get it yet? The only reason I got close to you idiots was so that I could rob you of everything you had. But now that you're broke, it looks like your dream's dead. So go, take your ship! Go on, find a navigator dumb enough to join you and go to the Grand Line."

"Wait, you really didn't want to go with them?" Chopper asked her, still in Robin's comforting arms.

"Of course I did," she answered softly, "But I couldn't go with them… not at the time." Even as he looked confused, she knew that she'd do it all over again if she had to. Even if those words were causing her terrible pain, she found something else that she just didn't want to lose… something irreplaceable… the one thing she never really had before… Friends…

"Continue on your quest to find the One Piece or whatever," she went on before she pointed her staff at them all, "Just leave here! You're an eyesore!"

Johnny and Yosaku growled furiously at her, looking like they wanted to attack. Convinced that she had scared them away, past Nami sighed and her eyes were now being hidden by her bangs as she told them all goodbye. But there, her voice had changed, it was no longer cold or scolding…

It was sad.

Robin could detect the sadness in her words and looked to Luffy. He just looked at her with that same blank stare and she knew that he could hear it too. This was how he knew that she was lying… maybe not about wanting them to without her… but there was something that she wasn't saying that got his attention. "Nami…" he said softly. For a few more seconds he stood there before he closed his eyes and fell back onto the ground.

"Big Bro Luffy!" Johnny exclaimed in surprise.

"What just happened?" Brook asked in surprise, "Did he faint?"

"Sleepy," Luffy stated.

"Sleep!?" Johnny exclaimed in disbelief as Brook almost fell over at that.

"Right now, in the middle of the road?" Yosaku questioned him.

"Well, he's found stranger places to fall asleep in," Usopp added in a deadpan voice.

"Well, I'm pretty tired," Luffy answered coolly before he yawned. "I'm not gonna butt in their affairs, not interested. But I'm not leaving either. Night."

Yosaku's jaw fell open, unable to believe what he was hearing.

"Big Bro…?" Johnny stuttered and even memory Zoro face-palmed himself at those words.

"He doesn't make any sense sometimes," Franky said, scratching his head.

"Actually," Robin disagreed, "I thought it made a great deal of sense. When you're tired, you're naturally want to sleep."

"That's not what I mean!" he said loudly as memory Nami seemed to snap.

She lost all coldness in her expression and she was now shaking with rage and she finally screamed out, "WHATEVER! JUST GO AHEAD AND DIE!"

And without a backward glance she turned and went running away as fast as she could, as if afraid to stay near them any longer as the memory faded around them.

"Was that really you, Nami-san?" Brook asked her after a few minutes of silence.

"Yeah," Nami answered softly.

"Why were you so angry then?" Usopp asked quietly. "You know if you told us the truth, we would've helped you."

"I know," she answered, "I just…?" she trailed off, unsure of what it was she even wanted to say anymore. "More than anything, I guess I was just angry that Luffy didn't seem to believe me."

"If you didn't say goodbye, it would've been harder for him to believe," Robin answered her, and she looked up in surprise.

Robin smiled back gently, "If you didn't really care, you wouldn't have said that. I could hear the despair in your voice. That's how I knew you were hiding behind that façade. I guess that Luffy could also hear it and decided that he would stay a little longer and see for himself."

"You really could?" Usopp asked in surprise, "I couldn't really hear anything like that."

Robin shrugged back. "I can't say to know what's going on in the captain's mind, but I'm guessing that he wanted to stay until he was convinced that you truly didn't want to go, Nami."

Nami blinked before she smiled. "I'm glad that he did," she said softly before the yelling and slashing behind her finally got to her and she screamed at Zoro and Sanji to stop fighting. Looking bruised and had cuts, they looked up in annoyance of being interrupted in the middle of their fight.

"What?" they asked loudly.

"I thought you guys wanted to watch?" she asked them irritably.

"Well, he started it!" the both yelled childishly, glaring hard at the other.

"I don't care who started it," she yelled, "Just shut up! I can't hear myself think over here!"

But as soon as the memory came back there was shouting and they looked in time Luffy there, holding onto Usopp who was a mess. His face was smashed in from both sides as if he got stuck between two boulders and blood was dripping down from his mouth and crooked nose. "Usopp!" he screamed out, shaking him a little.

"EEEEEHHHHHHHH!" screamed out Chopper as he ran over to get a good look at him, "Nami what did you do to him?!"

"I can see why they thought you killed him," Franky whispered, sweatdropped.

"I didn't do that!" she yelled.

"Nope," Sanji said, finally out of 'battle mode' and laughing in an almost embarrassed way as they looked at the damage. "Actually, Moss Head and I…?"

"Did Nami do all this to you!?" Luffy shouted, his eyes wide as he continued to shake him.

Past Sanji answered by pointing to Zoro and explained, "Sorry, Zoro and I did that."

"No, you did," memory Zoro disagreed darkly.

"And why would you hurt your own friend?" Brook gulped, feeling pity for Usopp. He wouldn't want to be caught between these two.

"It's not our fault," Sanji said defensively, "Me and Zoro were fighting and he ran between us! He should've known better!"

"I remember…" Usopp said, rubbing his long nose and remembering just how much pain he'd been in. He could still swear he saw a glimpse of the afterlife for a moment. "YOU TWO WERE LUCKY THAT YOU DIDN'T KILL ME!"

"Yeah, that would've sucked after pretending to be killed by Nami," Robin agreed and Usopp felt cold at the thought. Why does Robin do that?

Memory Usopp was slowly coming too and had to focus hard on Luffy. "Luffy…? You're here now…"

"Yep, sure am," Luffy answered, sounding truly relieved that Usopp wasn't dead.

"I'm here too. Hi there," Sanji greeted and Usopp seemed to have instantly recovered as he stood up and began yelling, "One of these days I'll kill you!"

"I'd like to see you try," current Sanji challenged him.

"Just you wait!" Usopp snapped, "One of these days, I might surprise you!"

"Oh, you just made a full recovery," memory Sanji said, greatly impressed as he clapped him on the shoulder.

"Shut up!" he yelled, knocking his hand away and looking ready to go into a shouting match before past Zoro reminded them of something.

"Oh, and by the way. We kinda heard you were dead. Killed by Nami," he stated causally, as if they had been told that he went out to the store instead of getting killed. Usopp blinked, as if remembering that as well.

"Stupid Johnny," Luffy growled, getting up, "He _was_ sprouting nonsense that entire time!"

"Well," past Usopp stated, his anger gone and looking thoughtful, "In a way… it _is_ the truth." Blinking in surprise they looked at him. "But I'm alive…" he went on frowning, "cause you see, she actually _saved_ my life." They looked completely lost as he explained everything. The Fishmen had captured him and were going to kill him—but he made things worse when he asked Nami for help, which made the Fishmen suspicious of her. He then used a Smoke Star to try to escape but Nami intercepted him and announced that she would kill him herself. However, instead, she stabbed her own hand to make it look like she killed him before she kicked him into the ocean so that he could swim away. When they told him that Johnny said that he saw the whole thing, Usopp supposed that Johnny must've been watching from a safe distance and was tricked like the Fishmen.

"You did that?" Brook asked Nami, rubbing his own hand. Not just anyone would do something like that.

"There wasn't any other way I could think of," Nami answered before glaring at Usopp, "But it is your fault you know. You just had to get yourself caught!"

"Well, it's not like I planned it like that!" he shouted back.

"So that's it," past Usopp said, finishing up telling them, "That's how Nami pretended to kill me and make sure I could escape from Arlong Park." He looked up at them and finished, "Looks to me like she's got some sorta hidden motive for hanging out with a bunch of renegade Fishmen."

"Believe me, if I had a choice…" Nami said softly, but she shook her head, not bothering to finish as she listened to them now talk about what they were supposed to do now.

"Fine," past Zoro said, his arms still folded, "What next? Are we gonna destroy Arlong Park?"

"Sounds like a plan to me," Franky answered coolly.

But memory Usopp was waving his hands around in front of them, trying to get their attention before they did something they'd regret. "Whoa! Hang on just a second!" he said loudly, "Don't you think we better find out what's going on with Nami first?!"

"That would be the best option," Robin answered, still patting Nami consolingly on the shoulder.

"It wouldn't have mattered at the time," she answered her softly just as another voice spoke up, "It's no use either way!"

Blinking in surprise she looked to see another face—one that she had longed to see for a long time.

A young woman was there with short, light purple hair and an even tan skin. Her right arm and chest were heavily tattooed very similar to Nami's—but she was giving them all a dark and stern look.

"Who is…?" Franky began, but the woman went on speaking before he could finish his sentence.

"No matter what you guys do; Arlong's rule won't come to an end," she informed them.

"Nojiko!" Usopp exclaimed in surprise.

"Who's she?" Luffy questioned him.

"Nami's big sister," Usopp stated.

"Your sister!?" Chopper said in surprise.

"Yep," Nami said proudly, smiling widely. "My big sister! It's good to see her again…"

Past Sanji was already smitten as he swooned, "What? Nami's sister? No wonder she's so hot!"

"Of course you would be thinking that," Usopp said to him irritably.

"Well it's true!" current Sanji sighed lovingly as he looked at her. "Jealous yet, Nami sweet?"

"No," Nami answered, rolling her eyes, "Something tells me you aren't her type."

"What do you mean that it's no use?" past version of Zoro questioned her.

"Just trust me. Don't get yourselves involved here," Nojiko said bluntly, and for those who haven't met her could tell that she was just as stubborn and strong-willed as her little sister. "And leave poor Nami alone. I'll explain the situation."

"Situation?" both Brook and memory Sanji repeated in confusion.

Past Usopp was now giving her his complete attention. "Do you mean that you can tell us why she joined up with Arlong's group?" he asked.

"Yeah," Nojiko admitted, folding her arms. "And if that doesn't get you to leave, I don't know what will."

"I guess nothing will," Nami laughed a little.

"Well, Luffy made it clear that he wasn't leaving yet," Zoro reminded her as the past versions were looking at her with new interest. Except for one…

"I'll pass," Luffy said as he walked past Nojiko and Usopp called for him to wait, but Luffy barely paid attention "I don't care about her past."

Nami's eyes widen. Here, he would've learned everything about her past handed to her on a plate, but he just walked away like he couldn't care less. Even as past Sanji called out to know where he was going, he just kept going.

"For a walk," he answered coolly.

"A walk?!" Usopp yelled after him, "Do you mean you're not gonna listen to this?!"

"Nope," he answered back and they all quickly followed after him, even though some of them were dying to know just what Nojiko was going to say. They all kept close after him—walking for a long time before anyone spoke again.

"So he didn't really care to know?" Nami asked him, she had no idea that her sister talked to them.

"Nope," Zoro answered her as they walked along with him, looking at the island.

"Neither did Moss Head," Sanji informed her, "He fell asleep before he heard anything."

"I don't think he cares about what our pasts are," Robin answered. "Anything about our pasts is just extra information."

Nami smiled a little, but now feeling worse than ever for seeing these memories without permission. And as she wiped the tears from her eyes, she spotted several figures in front of them.

"Fishmen!" Chopper exclaimed, pointing a hoof at them in surprise.

"Yeah," Nami said softly, feeling grim at that. Those faces were burned right into her memory and seeing them again didn't help.

"Oh!" Brook said, recognizing one of them, "It's that octopus gentleman!"

He was right. Hachi was indeed there, but he was with two others—a ray and smelt-whiting Fishmen. They looked up at him as he approached them in the middle of the road—each one with a smug smile.

"I don't know what it is about these jerks," Franky said, his eyes narrowing, "But they're ticking me off."

"You aren't the only one," Zoro said darkly as Luffy looked a little surprise at them.

"Oh, wow," he said mildly impressed before he quickly got over it and continued walking towards them. "They must be Fishmen." But without ever stopping, he calmly walked right by them and headed on his way as if they weren't even there.

It wasn't until he passed them all and was a good distance away did Hachi finally yell after him. "Hey, you there! Wait!"

Luffy didn't respond immediately but walked a few more paces before he looked back at him, "You mean me?" he called curiously.

"Who else?" Nami asked, but she was enjoying seeing the startled looks on the Fishmen's face. She was sure that this was a first for them… a human who wasn't afraid of them.

"Who are you?!" Hachi yelled at him, "And what are you doing on his island?!"

"Why? What does it matter to you?" he asked back and Hachi looked stumped by the question.

"Get out of that one," Usopp smirked.

"He doesn't seem like the same one we met before," Franky said in surprise.

"Yeah, the difference is almost night and day," Nami agreed.

"Well…" Hachi said, struggling to find words—it looked like a lot of hard work—before he finished, "it's just that we… don't get many visitors."

"I wonder why?" Sanji said sarcastically rolling his eyes.

"Oh," Luffy said, "Well, my name's Luffy. I'm just passing through."

"What?" Hachi repeated, sounding as if he never heard of such a thing before, "Passing through?" As Luffy turned and continued on, each of Hachi's arms pulled out six handkerchiefs and waved. "Well have a nice time!"

"Hey smartass!" the ray Fishman yelled out, "Where're you going?"

"Heck if I know?" he answered back calmly.

"Boy, he's not afraid at all," Usopp said with admiration as he watched on.

"Of course not," Zoro said coolly, his one eye narrowed in dislike as he looked to the three there. "They aren't worth fearing. Just a bunch of thugs…"

They were about to continue following after Luffy when Hachi laughed and folded his many arms, sounding more like the Hachi they said goodbye to on Fishman Island. "He seems like he'd be a fun guy to have around."

"Yeah sure," the smelt-whiting with the long slips, "But who the hell is he?"

The ray glared after him, "He walked right by us and wasn't even intimidated. Never seen that before."

Again, they went after Luffy, all of them silently thinking the same thing. Already, it was like he was taking charge of this island… by showing them that he wasn't afraid, he showed them that he wasn't afraid to stand up to them if he had to.

No one said much as they followed after Luffy for some time until they ended up on the edge of the village. But suddenly they saw a group of Marines closely following a man covered in scars and a spinning pinwheel on his hat. Nami gave a soft intact of breath as she watched the man come towards them.

"Genzo!" she whispered. Back home, Genzo acted as a father figure to both her and her sister, especially after their mother's death. But her smile soon faded when she saw who was behind him.

"That guy looks like a rat," Brook said, tilting his head a little as he looked at him.

"Not a bad guess if you ask me," Sanji said, remembering that coward as Luffy stopped walking and watched them walk past him.

"I don't get it," Chopper said, as the Marines barely glanced at Luffy. "If they're Marines, why don't they try to arrest Luffy?"

"Because they don't know him yet," Usopp explained, "It wasn't until _after_ Arlong was defeated did Luffy get his first bounty."

"Oh! Then does that mean they're here to deal with Arlong?" he asked innocently.

"Are you kidding?" Nami said angrily. "They didn't bother coming for eight years! And when they finally do…?!"

She couldn't finish, still so angry at the injustice of what those stupid Marines did. Acting on a tip from Arlong, they stole all the treasure she'd been hoarding to buy back her home… and not only that, but he destroyed her mother's tangerine grove _and_ shot Nojiko. After all that she just couldn't stand the Marines…

She blinked before she sighed. Well, that wasn't entirely true… despite her general dislike toward them, she does have one exception. She just can't help but feel uncharacteristically safe around a female Marine—like she always felt safe whenever her mother was around. She supposed that's why she tries hard to avoid them… she can't help but let her guard down and that's not something she should risk.

Luffy watched after them for a while when he said to himself, "That pinwheel is so cool!"

Nami laughed, momentary forgetting her anger. "Of course he would say that!"

Soon, Luffy was leaning his back up against a tree and staring up at the sky with a thoughtful expression as Nami stared after Genzo and the Marines, already knowing just what was going to happen.

"What did they do to you to cause such anger, Nami-san?" Brook asked her concerned.

Her hands shaking a little in anger she explained that their stupid captain forced Genzo to take them up to her house and accused her of harboring illegal money and began destroying everything. When she tried to stop them when they found the money, she found out about how Genzo and the rest of Cocoyashi knew that she joined the Arlong Pirates so that she could save the village… that she made a deal to buy back the village at 100,000 beri. Genzo and the others couldn't believe that she abandoned them to join Arlong's crew and they pressed Nojiko to tell them the truth later and since then they had been supporting her in secret. The reason they never let her know that they were aware of this because they were afraid that she'd never leave if she thought they were placing their hopes on her. But when she tried to stop the Marines from taking the money, they shot Nojiko in the arm when she tried to protect her.

"DAMN THOSE BASTARDS TO HELL!" Sanji screamed out, furious that those Marines would hurt a woman like that.

Franky however was bawling once again and when they looked to him he yelled for them to just look away as Chopper sniffled—truly touched at what he heard. But Nami spent her time near Robin, glad for the one comforting arm around her shoulders.

"A pinwheel, huh?" whispered Luffy's voice and brought them back to the matter at hand. When they looked, he blinked before he suddenly smiled to himself. "I just thought of a new move."

"Oh, I remember that," Zoro said suddenly, suddenly getting what he was saying.

"What?" Robin asked, but he shook his head, silently letting her know that she'll see later. But all too soon there was a commotion not too far away and soon there was a gathering of people with the man called Genzo calling out for a doctor.

"Is that…?" Chopper said softly and Nami nodded angrily. Dashing over, he checked out Nojiko himself as the rest of them stayed farther back, not sure they want to see this.

"Genzo, what is it?" a man with a white coat and sunglasses yelled as he came running over and she stared at him as well.

"Nojiko's been shot," Genzo explained as he and Nami gently lowered a body to the ground and Sanji was now so angry that steam was coming out of his nose and fire was licking his lower legs. "HOW DARE THOSE SHITTY BASTARDS DO SOMETHING LIKE THIS?!" he yelled at the top of his lungs, now wishing that he beat those Marines up harder for this.

When Genzo explained, the villagers were all horrified.

"The marines!?" the doctor repeated in disbelief. As Luffy spotted Nami and got up to head towards her. Her face was hidden by her hair and she was shaking hard with her teeth grounded together. As they got nearer, her sister's head was laying in her lap and she was holding her very gently.

"Nojiko?" the doctor asked as he checked her.

"I… I'm alright," Nojiko whispered back through gritted teeth.

"Chopper?" Robin asked as he looked at her shoulder.

"It's hard to tell since I can't touch her," he said, suddenly grateful when the doctor pulled back her shirt a little so that they both can see the bullet hole. He sighed in relief, "It's alright… it's not as bad as it could've been—it doesn't look like it hit an artery. But she's bleeding a lot! If they can just stop that then she should be up on her feet in no time."

"While I know that, it's still good to hear," Nami said smiling, her heart beating loud at the thought of something truly terrible happening to her sister and her best friend.

"Arlong has been working with those damn marines," Genzo told them all and the doctor looked up at him in outrage. "He's been lying to Nami for the last eight years!" he explained, "He never intended to honor their agreement at all!"

"That Bastard!" a villager yelled out furiously; and soon there were shouts that were filled with anger and shock.

"Oh, no," a woman whispered, horrified at the thought, "That means…"

"That scoundrel, he lied to our Nami!" someone else shouted. But Nami just carefully moved Nojiko's head from her lap as she got up, her fingers curling into tight fists.

"Nami…?" the doctor whispered as she stood there.

"I can't begin to tell you what was going through my head right there," current Nami said softly, "But out of everything else… I was angry. I never once thought that Arlong would go back on his word… I mean," she added, and she was surprised at how calm her own voice was, "I think… a part of me always thought that something like this would happen… but I tried not to think about it."

Robin smiled gently and tighten her arm as Nami gave them all a smile. "I don't know why I ever believed him, but it all worked out in the end," she said. "That's all that matters."

"Nami, you're so cute when you're brave," Sanji sighed, almost falling over as he stared at her love struck.

"Hey Nami," Luffy greeted happily, waving as he came up behind her, "What's up? Need help with anything?"

Instead of answering she turned and glared at him so fiercely that the smile was wiped off his face. Her eyes weren't the cold ones she had seen before—they were full of rage that seemed to burn a hole in whatever she stared at.

"Why are you still here?" she screamed at him as she grabbed him by the front of his shirt and pulled up to her face and continued to yell into his fearful face, "STAY OUT OF MY BUSINESS! JUST GET AWAY FROM OUR ISLAND!"

Tears were beginning to burn and she then threw him down to the ground as she went running off before she lost all control.

"Nami?" Usopp said worriedly.

"I just knew that if I stayed any longer I wouldn't be able to hold a straight face," she explained, remembering how she went to confront Arlong about this. "I wanted you all to leave… I didn't know… how to ask for help."

Shyly, Chopper hugged her leg and she smiled down at him as Luffy picked himself up from the ground and went towards a nearby tree and leaned up against it much like before. He was looking deeply annoyed as he muttered darkly, "What's her problem?" and here he sounded like a little boy would when faced with a girl on the playground who didn't want to play with him.

"Where did you go?" Brook asked her softly.

"I went back to Arlong and accused him of sending those corrupted Marines," she said darkly, "But he denied ever doing anything, he said that he never broke our deal and told me that if I wanted my village back I had to start over again from scratch."

"That soulless…!" Brook yelled furiously, unable to think of anything horrible enough to call him, just outraged that someone would do something like this.

"He's the worst villain yet!" Franky also yelled out.

"Don't worry, he's in prison now," she said firmly, "We don't need to worry about him anymore."

Luffy continued to lean against the tree as the other three crewmates arrived together—all of them were close together so that they could see what was going on, but out of the way so that they couldn't be seen.

Here, what looked like the entire village was out holding weapons—mostly things like clubs and homemade spears that were knives tied to staffs. There wasn't even a gun among them as they all gathered around, with Genzo cheering them on to take up arms.

"What's going on?" Chopper asked, though he already had a good idea to what was happening.

"The only reason they put up with him was because of Nami," Zoro answered, having stayed quiet the whole time as he watched the mob all gather in the square. But they weren't confident… he could see the sorrow in each of their eyes was similar to the mayor when he went running off to fight Buggy when he knew he didn't stand a chance of victory. But like him, these people were still willing to fight.

"Eight long years ago," Genzo told the townspeople, "We promised we wouldn't live our lives in vain! No matter the pain and humiliation we had to endure under Arlong, we swore we would fight the long fight so that Nami could meet their demands! BUT THEY LIED!" he shouted out, getting them all riled up, "They never intended to keep their end of the deal! Instead they stole our only chance at freedom! So now…" his eyes were bloodshot as he finally called out, "We should make those filthy Fishmen pay for the years they manipulated a kind young girl! Am I right?!"

"YEAH!" Chopper cried out with them, forgetting that he wasn't part of the mob.

"Yeah! Let's do this!" someone yelled out.

"We've always been ready to fight those monsters!" someone else yelled.

"Time to show those lousy, stinkin' Fishmen what we're made of!" more shouts came and they were all ready to go.

The past versions of the four Straw Hats were all watching calmly. They looked like they wanted to join in, but something seemed to be holding them back. But what that was became clear when they heard someone shouting for them to stop.

Looking up the road, they spotted Nami coming towards them with a big forced smile, but the present-day Straw Hats knew her well enough to see that she was fighting back tears as she came towards them, "Calm down! It's not _that_ much money! I can make it back in no time! I'll take care of it! Don't worry!"

"You didn't really think that it would work did you?" Robin asked her softly. "He betrayed you once…?"

"I didn't know what else to do," she answered calmly, hating seeing this version of herself.

No one else said anything, though in truth, they had no idea to what they _could_ say to her. But each one was feeling rage surge inside them at the thought of what Arlong had done. Each of them wanted to go to Arlong Park and turn that destroy that entire building before breaking Arlong's face until they're wasn't anything left.

"It'll be easy this time, I'm used to it! I'll be fine," past Nami said, still in that fake confident voice that fooled no one. "Just relax, it'll be okay. Hey, it's nothing compared to back then…" she came in front of them, "Come on everyone… I'm perfectly fine."

The Straw Hats each felt as if their insides were shriveling up at how hard she was trying. It was clear that she was still in denial—just trying to stop the people she loved so much from getting themselves killed.

But Genzo wasn't fooled as he walked to her and embraced her tightly. She stood there frozen as tears fell from his eyes. "You've done enough," he said softly but firmly. "You have to know that there's no point now. You've struggled so hard, carrying our lives on your back this whole time. I can only imagine that joining them must've been more painful than getting stabbed in the heart. You fought very well…"

Some of the Straw Hats felt tears forming in their eyes at those words. They couldn't imagine having the guts to work for someone who took someone they loved from them for all these years… alone. Usopp sniffled, feeling shame once again at the memory of how he was so close to wimping out and lying about fighting that stupid Fishman. He was proud that he stood up to fight and took him out… if it was for Nami, he knew he could've done it.

"It must've been so hard for you, Nami-san," Brook told her quietly.

"Genzo…" past Nami whispered in a broken voice as she also started to cry.

Genzo pulled away, his hand firmly on her shoulder before he said, "Set yourself free from this village."

Memory Nami looked horrified at those words and she cried out, unable to believe what he was saying, "Genzo!"

"Nami, do it!" Nojiko encouraged, now wearing a heavy bandage around her shoulder and arm.

"What? Nojiko!" Nami yelled as she looked around for some support, but it was clear from the rest of their faces that the entire town agreed.

Current Nami felt her heart being torn as she watched all the support that the town was giving her. They knew that they would've died if they went on their own, but the only thing they wanted from her was for her to be free. Like back then, she didn't know what she could say to that.

Nojiko gave her a brave look, no fear in her face as she said, "You're an exceptional young woman, and you have a _dream_."

"Everyone—listen!" past Nami yelled desperately, still trying to stop them. "I won't let you go!" and to some surprise, she pulled out a knife and pointed it at them with shaking hands. "Just stay right there! I'm not going to let anyone else get hurt by these monsters!" Her eyes were pleading as she told them, "You'll all die."

"But they can't sit back and not do anything anymore," Zoro informed her softly. "They let you fight on your own long enough. There's no more point of sitting back and not doing anything when they know that they have no intention of letting them or you go."

"Is it wrong to want them safe?" she asked angrily.

"No," he answered, "But you have to know when fighting's useless. If it were the other way around and it was Nojiko who had been forced to work for them all this time and they betrayed her, would you sit back and do nothing?"

She blinked hard, never thinking about that.

"Nami-san," Brook added gently, "There's only so much you can take before you have to stand up and do what you think is right. Everyone here is prepared to risk their lives. They can't take it anymore."

"We know that," Genzo told her as he grabbed hold of the knife and gripped it so hard that he was starting to bleed.

She looked startled at that as the doctor also spoke up in a grim way, "Nami, it's no use, we've made up our minds."

Still crying, she shook her head, not wanting to do it but Genzo wasn't taking no for an answer. "Get out of the way!" he finally yelled and she backed off, startled as he pulled out his sword and yelled to the people behind him, "MOVE OUT!"

"We may not win, but we will give 'em hell!" the doctor added, and without anyone showing any fear they charged off, past Nami, and heading towards Arlong Park. Memory Nami just stood there, not moving as they ran past her before the knife fell from her limp hand and she fell to her knees.

The current Nami remembered very well what she was thinking. Everything that she had done… all those years of suffering to keep anyone else from getting killed was all for nothing. Here, she had nothing left… she had finally given up and let her emotions out for the first time in years. She wasn't a strong woman here anymore… but a lost child whose village preferred to die than to let her suffer anymore.

Her past self was shaking as she glared at the mark on her arm and dug her nails into it so hard that it looked like she might've ripped her own skin off. Tears fell as she stared at it and her eyes widen as she finally snapped.

She hated that disgusting mark with so much loathing and detest and she couldn't stand to look at it anymore. And the tears of pure, uncovered feelings were smearing her face and falling fast as she grabbed the knife again and to some of the Straw Hat's horror, she began to stab her arm.

"NAMI STOP!" screamed out Chopper terrified.

But she couldn't hear him—and even if she could—there was no way that she would stop. With each stab with the knife she screamed out the venomous name of the pirate who robbed her of her family and her dreams… the one who had given her so much hopelessness and hatred. She kept going and probably would've gone on until she either bled to death, or simply severed her entire arm.

Nami watched herself the whole time with an empty expression; knowing that, at this point, she no longer cared what happened to her. She couldn't even remember feeling the pain of the knife because her insides were what were hurting her more than anything. Here, she had given up on everything… she couldn't see even the tiniest glimmer of hope… at least until…

Luffy had come over and grabbed hold of past Nami's wrist and stopped her from another stab. She didn't move for a second before she slowly turned to see who it was. Luffy's face was blank, his eyes hidden by the shadow of his hat… but also letting her know that he wasn't going to let her hurt herself like this anymore.

"Luffy…" she whispered softly as her hand went limp a second time and she seemed to lose all strength as she let the blood-soaked knife fall onto the road.

"I can't tell you how good it was to see him," Nami told them all quietly. "Even if I didn't think there was anything that he could do…"

"Did you honestly think that we could just stand back and not do anything after finding out everything?" Sanji told her firmly. "If we were allowed, we would've gone there and killed their asses before this happened!" He sighed, "But Luffy made us wait."

"Wait?" Chopper said in surprise.

"Because Nami didn't want him to help," Zoro answered, "Hard to say what he would've done at this point… he probably would've gone and dealt with Arlong even if you had said no, but I think he wanted to know that you wanted him to."

Nami nodded, "I know that… at least, now I do. I just… didn't know how to ask for help."

"What do you want?" past Nami demanded in a choked up voice, "You don't know anything about this. You don't know what has been happening on this island for the past eight years."

"Nope, I don't," Luffy answered honestly.

She was shaking as her hands gripped handfuls of dirt as she cried softly. "This has _nothing_ to do with you!" she said louder, "I told you to _leave this place_!"

"Yep, you sure did," Luffy said, without any doubt.

"SO LEAVE!" Nami yelled as she threw a handful of dirt behind her. And with every word she threw more dirt, now desperate to get him to leave. "I TOLD YOU TO LEAVE! GET OUT OF HERE! GET OUT OF HERE NOW! GO! GO AWAY! GO! GO! GO!" But she finally ran out of steam and openly cried out, sobbing and no longer trying to hold herself back as she let out all the feelings she kept inside for those eight miserable years.

Luffy didn't react at all as he watched… just standing there as she finally said the words that he had been waiting to say. At the end of her rope, she whispered, "Luffy…?" she looked back, tears in her eyes, "help me…" she finally begged.

For a moment, Luffy didn't do anything. But then he silently took off his straw hat and placed it on her head, and for a moment the tears stopped flowing as he turned and walked a few steps away. "Of course," he answered, "That's what friends do."

He suddenly stopped and took a deep breath before he screamed out at the top of his lungs. "HE'S GONNA PPPPPPAAAAAAAYYYYYYY!"

His words echoed around them and they could all feel the determination in that tone. He was going to kick Arlong's ass even if it killed him.

"Luffy…" past Nami said, her hand to her face as the tears continued to fall again—only this time they were tears of happiness when she noticed the other three waiting for orders—all of them ready to fight.

"Let's go," Luffy ordered.

They all looked up.

"Right!" they said, and they left Nami there… not speaking a word to what they were going to do, but she didn't need it as she sobbed openly, her hand still on the straw hat.

Current Nami was also crying a little as she watched this and rubbed her eyes, even laughing a little. "I thought it was all over," she confessed, "I thought I lost everything and then you guys showed up. I never thought that…?"

She didn't finish, but they were all smiling at her, fully understanding as they joined the march towards Arlong Park. The four were all side by side as they walked along—no one speaking a word as they marched along the road. They were ready to fight for each other merely for the sake of defending a single friend.

The current Straw Hats watched them, the three who were with Luffy here felt their pride rise as they watched themselves match.

"Man," Franky whispered as they walked on for about ten minutes and they could just make out the building in the distance, "I wish that was me in there!"

"Me too!" Chopper declared, hating that they didn't get a chance to meet until _after_ they got to the Grand Line.

"You're gonna love the show though," Sanji smirked as they got nearer to the gate. Thankfully, the villagers hadn't even made it past that point… Johnny and Yosaku were there—both looking severely beat up.

"What happened to them?" Robin asked, surprised to see them, and also realizing that this was the first time they'd seen them for awhile.

"They heard the whole thing about what Nami had to go through and wanted to help too, but they were no match for them," Zoro answered.

"I'm just glad they made it away alive," Nami answered. "I don't know why Arlong spared them… maybe he thought they weren't worth it."

"Either way, it's good to know that they were here, they stopped those people from getting killed," Usopp said as they all turned to see them coming towards them. The villagers seemed stunned that they were here to help as well as confused.

Looking now, they had reason… a small band of mismatched pirates coming out of nowhere to help them fight off their oppressors, seemingly without any reason? Robin smiled, knowing that it would be about time that these pirates got their dues for all the suffering they had caused.

When they neared them, Luffy told them all to step aside, and they parted almost at once without a word. Zoro smirked wider as they walked passed them all, as they stared in disbelief… it was worth it just to see the looks on their faces.

Johnny and Yosaku moved aside respectfully as they got to the door.

"Take them out Big Bro's!" Yosaku cheered on.

"Show them no mercy!" Johnny added, holding up a fist and grinning.

Luffy didn't even smile, as he cracked his knuckles and held up his own fist. "Oh, don't worry… I intend to."

Before they knew it, he pulled his fist back and punched the door enough times to make it seem as if a bomb went off as the front gate was smashed apart and exploded.

"Take him out Luffy!" current Usopp cheered on as Chopper was jumping up and down in excitement.

"THAT WAS ONE SUUUUPPPPPPEEEEEERRRRRR ENTRANCE!" Franky yelled, striking a pose, now eager to see this fight.

Through the rubble, they could see Fishmen of all shapes and types staring at them. It was almost a startling surprise to see them, thinking back to the battle on Fishman Island and the massive army they were up against. Though there were up nearly as much as back then, it was still just as important here.

Nami stared ahead and spotted him right away… he was the only one sitting down in the lawn chair, and looking just as she remembered. Her eyes narrowed dangerously.

"Arlong…" she whispered. She had grown so much stronger in just two years and a part of her wondered if she was now strong enough to have taken him on herself.

"So that's Arlong," Brook said, glaring angrily at him. Arlong was large and muscular… he was a light blue saw-shark Fishman and his nose proved that for its saw-like shape. His black hair sprouted from the back of his neck and reached down past his shoulders but they could also make out a shark's fin on his back, and the gills on both the sides of his neck. Sporting the tattoo of the Sun Pirates on the left side of his chest, and the identical mark that he had given Nami was on his arm.

His eyes were wide in shock as he looked at him. "What the…?"

"Bet they didn't see that coming," Franky laughed.

"Please," Zoro said, "They haven't seen anything yet."

"Now… which one of you is Arlong?" Luffy asked threateningly, holding up his fist and glaring at each one of them, daring them to speak.

The Fishmen all glared at him, all of them outraged that they had come here on their turf. Once the shock was over, Arlong leaned back in the chair, not believing that he was worth the trouble. "Arlong?" he repeated darkly, "Well, that just so happens that I'm Arlong."

Luffy walked to them, his head held up high and without a fear in the world as he marched in. Though they towered over them, they weren't any stronger than the Fishmen they fought before. However Arlong seemed to be different… he was calm and relaxed, but there was something dangerous in him that seemed to earn the respect of the rest of the crew. Not sure why he thought he deserved it…

"Good," Luffy said as he gave him an empty look, "I'm Luffy."

"Luffy?" Arlong repeated, obviously not recognizing the name, and clearly wondering just what he was doing here, "What are you supposed to be?"

"A pirate," Luffy answered bluntly.

Hachi, who was right next to Arlong looked surprised before he pointed wildly at him. "Nyuuu? Hey! That guy! Wait a sec, I remember him! He's the guy who likes to go on walks!"

"Really?" Sanji asked sarcastically, rolling his eyes. "What an idiot."

"Hold it right there," one of the Fishmen said as he and another attempted to cut Luffy off. "Where do you think you're going?"

"You wanna talk to the boss?" the other asked, "Well, you gotta talk to us first. Get it?"

They smirked evilly as they put their hands on his shoulders, but Luffy banged their heads together and knocked them out as he told them to all move it. The other Fishmen looked startled at that as he walked right up to Arlong.

"You're gonna love this part, Nami," Usopp promised, remember this and was eager to see it a second time.

"So what does a pirate want with me?" Arlong asked causally, though there was a hint of irritation in his tone.

Luffy stopped in front of Arlong. He glared at him for just a moment longer before he seized his wrist and threw it back; and by the time he swung it back, he suckerpunched Arlong so hard that he was launched from his chair and hit the ground, rolling over several times before was smashed through the wall.

Nami smiled, they had no idea how long she had waited to see that.

"THAT'S HOW YOU DO IT!" Chopper yelled joyfully with Brook as Robin smiled proudly.

Sanji nodded firmly. "I'm only sorry Luffy didn't hit him harder here."

"Be patient," Zoro reminded him as Arlong pushed himself from the rubble, everyone was staring—slack jaw—at Luffy.

"Who the hell are you?" Arlong demanded furiously.

Luffy's face was filled with nothing but fury, his face making look like some kind of monster as steam actually came out of his nose. "THAT'S FOR MAKING OUR NAVIGATOR CRY!" he yelled at him.

Those words made Nami feel warm inside. Luffy cannot forgive Arlong, not for all the suffering he had caused the villagers or for countless nameless people… but merely for making her cry.

"Couldn't have said it better myself," Sanji agreed and smirked evilly when his past self came running up behind him. After this declaration of war, the Fishmen started to attack Luffy, but he easily took them all out with a few kicks.

"Back off! You're out of your league!" past Sanji yelled, kicking their asses and walked on to stand next to Luffy so that he could scold him for going in by himself, which Luffy responded not to worry about him, and that he could take care of these guys on his own.

"You fool," past Sanji said in annoyance, "I never said anything about being worried… I just don't want you hogging all the actions."

"Oh," Luffy said in understanding.

"Of course I didn't want that!" present-day Sanji agreed, "After all, I wanted to be there for my sweet Nami as well! And I couldn't do that if he took care of them all."

"Well," past Usopp said nervously, also coming up, "I just want to let you guys know that I don't mind it if you hog it all."

Memory Zoro came up and rolled his eyes, "I see that you're raring to go, as usual."

"And you haven't changed since then," current Zoro teased as Usopp sighed, not even bothering to tell him off. As soon as he saw him, Hachi cried out in anger that Zoro tricked him before.

"Tricked him?" Robin repeated, looking at him in surprise.

"Please, I hardly said anything," Zoro answered dully, "It's not my fault that guy's an idiot."

But soon Hachi screamed in fear when he saw that Usopp was alive and the ray Fishman, who Nami told them was named Kuroobi snarled that Nami was a traitor.

"_You're_ the traitor?" Robin asked, eyebrows raised, "They betrayed _you_ first."

"How can I be a traitor if I was never on their side to begin with?" Nami asked angrily as Arlong began to laugh and sent waves of cold down her spine.

"A pirate? Of course…" Arlong said, highly amused, "this is all starting to make sense now. You've been after Nami this whole time." He burst out laughing again, louder than ever, "The girl is mine and I'm not giving her up!"

"Don't you listen to a single twisted word," Usopp said firmly, "Just wait until Luffy gives him the beatdown of a lifetime!"

"I know," Nami answered, but still… she kept her hand on her tattoo, remembering how disgusted she felt with herself. She didn't want anyone to see it… that awful mark. She was just pretending to work for Arlong but that mark sewn into her skin made her feel like he owned her… like she was his pet cat or something.

She felt dirty just thinking about it.

Hachi also laughed as he walked up confidently, "A bunch of idiots like you aren't worth Arlong's time!" he declared, "We know how to deal with you!" And he blew through his long mouth like a trumpet.

"Is that like a dog whistle?" Robin asked curiously.

"Dog whistle?" repeated Brook in surprise.

"It's a special whistle that emits a high-pitched sound that only dogs can hear," she answered, "It calls dogs to you and I'm starting to think it's the same thing here."

"I guess you can think that," Nami answered her as their 'friend' from before came.

"Mohmoo?!" Chopper yelled in surprise as the beat up looking Sea Cow appeared from the waves—still sporting a giant, swollen lump on its head.

"I guess it's still recovering from its encounter with you guys," Robin said in amusement as Hachi greeted him. It leaned forward to see what it wanted, but it stopped dead as soon as it saw Luffy and Sanji there.

"Oh, look who's back," Luffy said, folding his arms.

"Seems he's a friend of the Fishmen," Sanji nodded in agreement.

Mohmoo was now crying as he saw them and mooing softly to himself.

"He's saying that he doesn't want anything to do with you two because you guys are insane," Chopper informed them.

"Well good, at least he learned his lesson," Sanji said as Mohmoo turned and was about to leave, still crying as Hachi yelled after him to come back. But the Sea Cow didn't stop until Arlong told it to. Just a few words from him had apparently scared him enough to want to attack… too bad for him that Luffy was ready for it.

"What's Luffy doing?" Franky asked Luffy stuck his feet into the cement.

"Putting his foot down?" Robin suggested as the others all looked worried about Mohmoo. Luffy, however, was now spinning his chest around his body several times and then stretched out to grab Mohmoo's horns, showing off his powers.

As everyone else freaked out, Zoro yelled at Sanji and Usopp to get back as Luffy yelled out, "TIME FOR SOMETHING NEW!"

And with his great strength, he was actually able to pick up Mohmoo and was spinning him around, just like a giant pinwheel. Everything in their path, Fishmen and the building behind them was either being taken out or destroyed. By the time that he was finished, there was only Arlong, Hachi, and two other Fishmen who were left standing while the front of Arlong Park was smashed to pieces.

But Luffy focused only on Mohmoo… in the end he was finally able to throw the Sea Cow as far away as he could from them while the rest of Arlong's crew lay out cold all around them. Everyone was staring at him in shock.

"Oh," Robin said brightly, "That's what you meant when he mentioned the pinwheel!"

"Amazing!" cried Brook in wonder. "Luffy-san never fails to amaze me!"

"I'm more surprised that crewmates that once sailed with Jimbei weren't tougher than this," Zoro said calmly as Luffy gasped for breath. "If they were all as strong as Jimbei was, we wouldn't have stood a chance."

"Maybe Jimbei wasn't as strong as he is now?" Chopper suggested.

"I think it's more along the lines that Jimbei never stopped _becoming_ stronger," Robin said softly.

They looked to her.

"Never stopped…?" Usopp repeated in confusion.

"What I mean is, when they came here to the East Blue, Arlong hasn't had to fight hard battles at all, has he Nami?" she asked her.

Nami thought it over before she blinked in surprise. "You know what… you're right. He hardly ever fought. He usually just sent one of his cronies out because that's all that was needed."

"I get it," Zoro nodded in understanding. "He got lazy and let himself go."

"Though still dangerous to normal people," Robin added softly, "He grew too cocky from being here, thinking that he was stronger than everyone else."

"Well, we sure taught him a lesson," Usopp said smugly, "Just because we're born in the East Blue doesn't make us pushovers!"

"Well said," Nami answered smiling, now really enjoying the battle so far—now that she knows just what's gonna happen.

Once he caught his breath, Luffy was yelling out, "Alright that's it Arlong, I'm done playing games with you—I didn't come here to beat down all your cronies. I came here to teach you a lesson!" he pointed at him in a challenging way and yelled, "So step up!"

They looked to Arlong. Though he was still smiling, his eyes were now angry. "Oh, I will, don't worry. Actually I was just thinking about how painfully I'll end your life."

He said this in what sounded like a purr, but they weren't sure Luffy heard this as the other three Straw Hats gathered around him and told him off for that stunt.

"That was the worst plan ever!" past Sanji yelled, kicking his head.

"Not really," current Sanji disagreed, "He's had stupider ideas."

"Yeah! Were you trying to kill all of us too?!" memory Usopp yelled in his ear. The citizens behind them however were amazed and were cheering them on.

They even heard the doctor scream out, "I just can't believe there's a human who can throw that giant monster!"

"Oh, there are," Zoro smirked, "Though most of them are living out here in the Grand Line. But I bet that there are hundreds out there who can do that."

"What are you doing?!" past Usopp screamed with bloodshot eyes as Luffy was not trying to get his feet out of the ground, "Are you ruining something else?!"

Luffy just looked down at his feet in polite confusion.

"Right… I forgot about this too," Usopp groaned, smacking himself in the face. "That idiot… just what was he thinking here?"

"What now?" Chopper cried out, but Hachi was already screaming out insults.

"How dare you hurt our brothers?" he demanded, waving his six arms around crazily.

"It was easy," current Sanji stated calmly.

"Very well," Kuroobi added, "It seems like we must join in on this fight."

"Now you'll get an education on the inferiority of your species, Choo," the remaining Fishman with the long lips, who Nami informed them his name was Choo, spoke up.

"Oh, really?" past Zoro smirked, "I'd like to see that."

"And I've yet to," current Zoro added. Arlong chuckled to himself as Kuroobi and Choo both declared that they'd take them out for him.

"PLEASE LET US KILL THESE WEAKLINGS!" Hachi yelled.

They were all a little startled at that—and Chopper said, "I like the Hachi we met better."

"I agree," Nami sighed, she'll take this new Hachi over the old one any day.

"Alright," Arlong answered agreeably, "They're all yours."

Sanji and Zoro were both looking confident, however, Luffy was looking to the others and said a little nervously, "Ah, guys? There's something I should tell you…?"

But just as Sanji mentioned the best way to cook octopus, Hachi attacked them with his Jet Ink—squirting black ink at them. Though the other three were able to dodge it, Luffy stayed behind and was quickly doused with ink from head to toe. Because of that, he was now blinded, and past Zoro was yelling at him to why he didn't dodge it.

Hachi then picked up a large chunk of the building that Luffy had destroyed when he threw around Mohmoo—and turned back to Luffy—his attention all too clear. Usopp was screaming for him to run, but then came the sad truth… Luffy couldn't run—his feet were stuck.

"He's joking right?" Franky asked exasperatedly.

"But you're the one who stuck them into the ground in the first place!" past Usopp yelled.

"I still wish I knew what he was thinking," Usopp sighed at that as past Zoro smacked himself in the face frustrated. Thankfully, when Hachi threw the broken stone on top of him, Sanji stepped in and destroyed it with a single kick.

"You're such a pain," he hissed in annoyance as Luffy cheered him on. But then he smirked again as he confessed, "Looks like I picked one hell of an idiot to be my captain."

"We all did," past Zoro added in light amusement.

"Yeah, but hey… at least we've had some good times," Usopp laughed with the other Straw Hats.

"Sometimes I still wonder," Sanji said as his past self also added, "Though in truth, our idiot captain is far better than a gang who prey on a lady."

"That I can't disagree with myself," current Sanji nodded sagely.

"A lady huh?" Kuroobi asked skeptically, "Ha! You rush into certain death for one lousy girl? I think that's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard!"

"I always hated him," Nami sighed, remembering how cold that Kuroobi was… aside from Arlong, he was always the one who made things the most difficult for her.

Past Sanji glared at him. "Lousy girl?" he repeated, and they could hear the anger in his voice. "If you insult Nami one more time, I can promise you'll go from Fishman to fish sticks!" He took out his cigarette and said threateningly, "Got that?"

"Nice pun, Sanji," Robin said in amusement.

"Thank you Robin dear!" Sanji swooned at her joyfully. "I do try hard…"

Kuroobi didn't look concerned nor the least bit impressed. "Your skills are quite exceptional," he admitted after a minute, "For a human. But I must admit chivalry from a pirate seems just a little fake."

"Huh…" Franky said thinking it over, "He's got a good point."

"Pirates aren't exactly known for being model citizens," Robin admitted with a little laugh. "But thankfully, not all pirates are the same."

Past Sanji sneered back at him as he admitted smugly, "I'm dead good at what I do," he said as he put the cigarette back into his mouth. "And I guarantee that there's nothing _fake_ about my desire to help a beautiful lady in need."

"It is my greatest honor in life," Sanji answered in a cool voice, breathing on the smoke, "Helping out beautiful women in desperate need."

Robin laughed as Nami rolled her eyes.

Past Sanji and Kuroobi faced off as Usopp tried to pull Luffy's feet out—as the rubberbrained captain started picking his nose. Hachi picked up more stone and was determined to go after him—but past Zoro was one step ahead of him. He pointed his sword threateningly at him, taunting Hachi to come after him instead.

It worked… furious Hachi yelled out, "You're Zoro! I forgot!" he threw his stone at him which Zoro dodged easily as he finished yelling, "You can't get away tricking me!"

"He thought I was a guest visiting Arlong," he told them all when they looked at him.

"He never was the smart one," Nami nodded wisely as Hachi continued to yell at Zoro for what he did to the rest of his crewmates.

"That stuff's old news octopus man," memory Zoro said, holding up the white blade, "I personally don't care what reasons you have for wanting to kill me, the situation as changed. You see, the tables have turned." Holding his blade and carefully unsheathing it so that no one could miss the gleaming blade, "You're not the hunters anymore, understand? Now it's you fish freaks who are being hunted!"

"Alright Zoro!" cheered Chopper excitedly, in awe as always.

"Yohohoho, Zoro-san is so cool!" Brook added as Zoro smirked.

"LUFFY!" past Usopp screamed out and they turned to see that he had accidently let go of his captain who ended up smacking right into Choo and sent him flying back. Now angry, Choo had killing Usopp in his sights… however, Usopp went running off passed all the citizens so that Choo was distracted for a moment. Once Choo realized that they were all there, he was planning on killing them all as well, but Usopp sent an exploding star at him from a safe distance away.

"Did you think that it would be easy?!" memory Usopp challenged him. "You're dealing with ME now!"

"You know, you don't sound as intimidating when you're running away," Sanji said to him.

"Hey! I ended up beating him didn't I?" he demanded, and he felt a surge of inner pride at that. That was the first time he fought his heart out like a pirate! It was his first real victory since joining the Straw Hats. And he was a normal human being going up against a Fishman as well!

"Enough!" Choo yelled, losing his cool completely, and went charging after him, "I'm going to get rid of you right now!" As they watched them go running off Genzo was asking who he was.

"Brave one minute and cowardly the next," the doctor said confused, "He's a baffling man."

"I think that sums you up pretty well, Usopp," Franky laughed.

"I can be brave when I put my mind to it!" Usopp snapped.

Arlong finally got up from where he sat and walked towards them. "You morons are a pathetic sight to behold," he growled, now sounding ticked off, "I'm sick of watching this so get out of my way!"

"But sir," Kuroobi said quickly, "There's no need for you to go on a rampage, think of Arlong Park!"

"Don't worry," Arlong said, "I know. I just thought of a fun game to play that's all."

"I don't think I want to know what he considers a game," Brook said nervously.

"Trust me, you don't," Nami told him darkly.

When he was close enough, Luffy tried to throw a punch at him, but he caught his fist as it went flying past him. "Do you honestly think your sad little group can defeat us?"

"So what if we do?" past Sanji sneered.

"Yeah, so what if we do, huh?" Luffy demanded, "Now let go!"

"You got something to say to us?" past Zoro added as he held out his sword, ready for a fight. But instead of answering, Arlong dug his hand into the cement and pulled Luffy up… uprooting the portion of the concrete surrounding Luffy's implanted feet. Luffy screamed out as the others gapped.

"Ok, so he's not all just talk," Robin answered coolly, before her eyes widened, suddenly realizing what he was planning on doing.

"Did you know that those with Devil Fruit powers can't swim?" Arlong asked mockingly, "But honestly, anybody in this situation would sink right to the bottom!"

"EEEEHHHHHH! He's right! Luffy!" Chopper screamed out fearfully as Arlong laughed again.

"Don't worry," Sanji told them all, "We got him out of there in time… but boy what a pain that was!"

Luffy tried to punch him again, but Arlong bit down on his hand. Arlong laughed as Luffy let out a cry of pain. "You fool," he said, but Luffy then reached over and bit down on Arlong's arm, causing him pain this time.

"Of course he'd do that," Nami said fondly.

"He's cocky," Sanji muttered firmly, "It's what did him in. He underestimated us."

Arlong finally had enough, he threw Luffy high into the air and right over the sea.

"LUFFY!" past Zoro cried out.

"Damn you!" memory Sanji growled. The last thing they heard before Luffy hit the water was Arlong continuing to laugh.

The memory faded and soon they were back out in the open air in the darkness. They had traveled much farther than before and now they couldn't even see the forest anymore and instead they were nearing the ocean shore that glistened darkly in the night. But the field they were in was suddenly filled with glistening fireflies, bringing the only rays of light.

"That was scary," Chopper asked worriedly after a few minutes of letting what they saw sink in.

"Yeah," she nodded, now getting tired of people asking her that, "I didn't show up until a little bit later after I took care of my arm. But it's just hard seeing it all over again from the beginning."

Robin just patted her back as she glanced around, wondering how far from the ruins they've come now.

"Man, I'm getting tired of this," Franky said, staring around. "You think that it'd be morning by now after all this time."

"That's what's been bothering me too," Nami said as she reached into her pocket and pulled a small pocketwatch to see what time it was. "What?" she whispered as she looked at the time, "This can't be right. It says that it's only ten at night!"

"What? No way," Usopp said, looking over her shoulder. "If that's true then that means that it's only been a couple hours since we went jumping through memories! I thought that we'd be near morning by now!"

"Your watch must be broken," Franky added, still looking around for the Sunny.

"I don't think that's the case," Robin answered, suddenly having an idea to what was going on.

"Then what is it?" Usopp asked her, "I mean, we've spent hours trapped in Luffy's memories already! And now we find out that it's only been two or three hours since then? No way!"

"As soon as the next memory starts, we start timing it," she answered, "We'll know for sure after that."

At her words, the bright day was back and they were back in Arlong Park. It was a mess… the whole battlefield was mostly destroyed—and Arlong was on his feet, holding a wounded Zoro by the throat.

"EEEEEEEHHHHHHHH!" screamed Chopper in horror as he saw the pool of blood dripping from Zoro's wound—it looked as if he had just been carved open. "ZORO! DID ARLONG DO THAT TO YOU?!"

"Nah," Zoro shrugged coolly, "That idiot hardly did any damage. That was from the wound Mihawk gave me."

He reached up to touch the scar on his chest and Chopper's eyes widen. "WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?!" he screamed, "YOU MEAN TO TELL ME THAT YOU DIDN'T GET THAT TREATED?!"

"I thought I could walk it off," he answered calmly, not seeing what the big deal was.

"WALK IT OFF?!" Chopper repeated, clearly thinking that Zoro was out of his mind. "YOU THINK YOU CAN WALK SOMETHING LIKE THAT OFF?! DID YOU THINK IT WOULD HEAL ON IT'S OWN?! I THOUGHT YOU WERE SMARTER THAN THAT!"

"Would you shut up?" he asked in annoyance.

Suddenly something was sent flying high in the sky, and Luffy's voice was screaming out, "I'M BACK!"

"Oh, so you got him out in one piece?" Robin answered calmly.

"Yeah," Zoro said, his eye twitching horribly at the memory of what was going to happen next. "And I still plan on killing him for this."

"What did he do…?" Brook asked, but he didn't even finish his question. Luffy 'saved' Zoro by switching places with him and actually throwing him off into the distance.

As Chopper screamed and made to run after him Robin said in interest, "I wonder how far you flew off."

"I landed in the water," Zoro growled as Sanji roared with laughter. But attention was back on Luffy, he was now launching several attacks against Arlong—they seemed to be inefficient against him—though Luffy claimed it was just warm-up.

"Wait, what happened between you guys and the other Fishmen?" Chopper asked worriedly.

"Easy," Zoro answered, "I took care of Hachi, and Mr. Nosebleed took out that ray. Luffy was underwater the whole time so he missed it."

"Watch it," Sanji snapped back.

"And once I lured that guy into my trap, it was easy to take him out!" Usopp said boastfully.

"Really?" Chopper asked excitedly.

"Yeah," he laughed, "Fishmen are so easy once you know how to handle them."

"Yohohoho, that's true," Brook said happily as they enjoyed the sight of Arlong pulling himself from the side of the building that Luffy knocked him through.

"What a bunch of fools," he hissed menacingly. "You think you can actually beat me?! You were better off drowning on the ocean floor."

"No, I don't think so," Luffy answered back, still stretching out. "I like it up here… yep."

"Actually," Sanji disagreed, "I can think of better atmospheres." He looked around at all the unconscious Fishmen and sighed. Why couldn't they have some hot mermaids here with them?

Arlong glared up at him before he snarled, "Do you not understand my anger?" he then got up on his feet, "I saw my brothers crushed like worms! You'll realize soon enough. You should've quit fighting long ago."

"Maybe now he'll see how it feels to see someone you care about being attacked like that," Nami said, her eyes narrowed in dislike.

"Luffy!" past Usopp cried from a hole in the wall and they were surprised to see him there with blood dripping down from his face. "I got your back pal!"

"What happened to you? You look like you were chewed up and spit out?" Franky said in surprise as past Nami rolled her eyes at him.

"If he loses," past Sanji's voice said out and they looked up to see him soaking wet, and leaning up against the wall with Genzo and Nojiko. He was trying to light a wet match before he just gave up. "Then we'll all…" he flicked the match away, "die…"

"Yeah," Genzo agreed softly as they watched the match go flying off, almost as if in slow motion, "We will…"

"If that happens," Nojiko also added softly, "It's the end of the East Blue too."

"So no pressure or anything," Zoro said coolly as he was now watching the stand-off with Luffy and Arlong. He was interested to see what happened here. After a few minutes of silence, Arlong finally spoke.

"Do you know what the biggest difference between you and me is?" he asked conceitedly.

"The nose?" guessed Luffy as he cracked his knuckles.

Franky burst out laughing at that.

"Well, you can't say that he's lying," Usopp laughed well.

"The jaw…?" Luffy then suggested before then held up his hand, "Webbing!"

"All true," Robin agreed, as the others all laughed as well.

Arlong's eyes turned white in rage. "SPECIES!" he screamed and he lunged forward to try and bite him, but Luffy easily dodged it. Again and again Arlong tried to bite, like a wild animal, but Luffy moved back, they went at it until Arlong had finally grabbed hold of his head and slammed him against a pillar. He would've bitten him here, but Luffy grabbed hold of his head and stretched it out of the way so that Arlong bit the pillar… and shattered it into pieces.

"He bit through the stone pillar!" Brook cried out in amazement.

"Wow… if he bites you… he won't just leave a mark… he'll bite your right through your bones," Robin said in impressed.

"Robin," Usopp pleaded as Luffy snuck away from the collapsing building. Arlong turned back to sneer at him as if he just proved a valid point.

"You see?" he asked him mockingly, "This is the inherit power of Fishmen. I feel sorry for you humans for having been created with such… limited powers." He slowly walked towards him still taunting him the whole time. "We've been on a different level since the beginning of time. You are inferior… it only makes sense for you to bow before us." He stopped and stood before him as he proclaimed, "You're so weak! Your presence on this planet is deplorable!"

"Well he just shut up?!" Sanji yelled, wanting to break this guy's jaw and shut him up. "Bla, bla, bla… the guy bites through a rock and suddenly he's looking for a soap box to stand on and preach to the world."

"Don't you think your time has come to an end?!" Arlong demanded again. He chuckled, as if he told a funny joke, "I'll show you! Show you the _real_ difference between you and I!"

Luffy just smiled as he stood up. "Sure," he told him pleasantly, "Go ahead. There's no way I'm losing to a big fish! Because… _I'm_ gonna be King of the Pirates!"

Arlong picked up a piece of the stone pillar and tossed it up and down like a ball in his hands. "King of the Pirates…? Don't be foolish. A puny human like you couldn't possibly conquer the Grand Line. You can't even crush a pillar with your jaws." And like that he crushed the rock with little effort.

"Why would he want to?" Nami asked shaking her head. Just because you can break something doesn't prove you're better than anyone.

"Oh, I think Luffy can," Franky disagreed, "He's got a nasty bite. I mean, he can bite through steal now can't he?"

"Yeah, so what?" demanded Luffy, he then went and broke through the stone with his fist. "Stop your bragging! You aren't that awesome!"

"Well said!" Brook cheered on as Arlong looked surprised at Luffy's words.

"Besides, smashing stone with your teeth's not that smart," Luffy added, holding up a fist.

"That's right! You're the best Big Bro! Tell him like it is!" Yosaku cheered on in the back.

"Yeah!" yelled Johnny, also agreeing, "What idiot bites a rock anyway?!"

"I don't think that's what Arlong meant," Robin said laughing.

Veins stood out on Arlong's neck. "Fools!" he yelled out furiously, knowing that he was being mocked, "That's not the point! Every member of the human race is ignorant and weak!"

"What does that make him I wonder?" Zoro asked lightly.

Arlong pointed at Luffy and demanded, "What good are you if you can't even pull yourself out of the water?!" He then flew at him for another bite as Luffy dodged it and stretched his arms out to grab hold of a couple swords.

"As a matter of fact," Luffy said pulling the swords back and then getting right into Arlong's face, "I'm worthless without my friends to help me out!"

"I think you can learn a lesson about humility from him, Usopp-san," Brook stated causally.

"Why is everyone picking on me?" Usopp demanded.

"Sorry, but your bragging can become annoying," Nami told him brightly. As he glowered at them both, Luffy chuckled as he held out the swords and took everyone by surprised, thinking that he knew how to use them as he swung and attacked. But he wasn't really using them, just swinging them around much like how Zoro did when completely losing it against Mihawk. But Arlong effortlessly broke the swords—but it turns out that it was a ruse… with Arlong overconfident over destroying the swords, Luffy delivered a powerful blow shattering his teeth.

"Yeah!" Chopper yelled joyfully and everyone in the memory also cheered in astonishment, "He broke his teeth!"

Luffy stood up and thought it all over for a moment. "You're right! I don't know how to use a sword you bastard!" he yelled after the brief pause. "I'm a terrible sailor! I definitely can't cook… and I can't even lie! Without my friends to help me I would've been dead a long time ago!"

They all looked at each other—having never really thought about it before. Despite having a small number of members, they had become a very powerful crew. All of them have at least one talent at which they are virtually perfect at and each member is, more or less, a formidable fighter in their own right. When one of them is incapable of doing a task, another can help out in their place instead.

It was funny how well Luffy summed that all up at once so simply.

Arlong chuckled from where he lay, his hand over the place where Luffy struck. "So you fully admit how pathetic you are. You may be a fool," he said as he sat up, "But you're certainly honest. How much your crew feel? Tolerating this idiocy day in and day out? I bet they're sick of it."

"THAT'S NOT TRUE YOU STUPID FISH!" Usopp yelled out.

"YOU TELL HIM USOPP!" Chopper yelled out just as loudly. "I JOINED THE STRAW HATS BECAUSE OF LUFFY!"

"But that makes me wonder… why they tried so desperately to save their half-wit leader," Arlong finished. Luffy glared at him as Arlong held his hand to his mouth still to his broken teeth. "Someone like you doesn't deserve a ship or a crew."

"I think that he's got that backwards," Zoro said darkly and they all nodded firmly at that.

"Though he is a pain, it's hard not to like the rubber idiot," Sanji agreed unworriedly. "I rather be on his ship than with a bastard like Arlong any day."

"What good is a helpless rubber-brain captain to them?" Arlong finished, "What can _you_ possibly do?"

"I can kick your ass," Luffy responded confidently.

Usopp and the rest of villagers cheered him on as past Nami smiled, even memory Sanji said irritably, "Well get to it you numskull."

"Cheer all you want! But it won't change a thing!" Arlong shouted out, and within seconds he regrew his teeth.

"Whoa…" Franky said taken aback, "Didn't see that coming."

Luffy gasped out as well. "He's got new teeth?" he said in shock.

"I'm a shark," Arlong reminded him, "New teeth will grow one after the other. And with each set, I will grow stronger and stronger." Within seconds, his teeth had regrown and, using this, he pulled his teeth out to create hand-held castanet weapons for each hand. And when he attacked, they thought the worse for a minute as he laughed hysterically at each attack—one after another. However, it took him some time for him to realize that Luffy used one of his crew as a human shield the whole time. Enraged, Arlong hollered at such a dirty tactic and screamed about how he dared to use his own crewmate as a shield.

"But he's the one who attacked him," Chopper pointed out.

"You think he'd noticed that after all those attacks," Zoro said with a nod. He supposed that Arlong was so trigger happy at the thought of hurting Luffy that he just didn't notice what was in front of him.

"What are you talking about?" Luffy asked, as if he was being scolded by his parents for something that someone else did, "_You're_ the one who attacked _me_ don't you remember?"

"Don't move a muscle," Arlong warned, clinking the teeth together, "Rubber man."

Luffy thought it over before he said, "Say… now that's an idea."

Again Luffy was forced to dodge it before he was able to get in another kick. In the end, he was able to knock out Arlong's teeth once again and was able to steal it for him to use.

"Really?" exclaimed Franky as they all felt sweatdropped at that moment. "Is he even taking this seriously?"

"I have no idea," Sanji admitted grimly. After several more attacks, Arlong finally bit Luffy hard in the side, but this time Luffy was able to use the teeth he stole to bite him back in the neck, causing Arlong terrible pain and let him go. "So you used my teeth," he said as he wrenched them off his shoulder, "But your puny jaws aren't strong enough." He then smiled, "Now listen, sharp as my teeth are, they're only useful when they come with powerful jaws like mine! THEY'RE DEADLY!" and with that he bit down on Luffy's arm.

Chopper screamed in terror as Luffy screamed in pain. "THIS IS BAD! IF HE TRIES TO PULL BACK HIS WHOLE ARM COULD BE TORN OFF!"

"Yeah, he really had us all scared here," Sanji said, knowing that this could've ended really bad.

"BIG BRO'S GONNA GET HIS ARM BITTEN OFF!" Yosaku screamed and past Nami looked horrified. But to everyone's surprise, Luffy reached up and grabbed Arlong's hair; in the end, he was able to pull him down so that he could slam his foot into his head to get him to let go. They both fell to the ground exhausted… lying on their backs, both now injured.

"If he took just one step back, his arm would've been ripped off," Zoro said impressed.

"That was fast thinking," Brook said softly. "He was this close to lose his arm like Shanks-san."

"Oh, I doubt that he was aware of it," Nami said fondly, "He just goes by instinct—almost like a wild animal. I noticed that sometimes."

Arlong had gotten up, and quick as a flash, he jumped for the sea.

"That's not good," Robin said worriedly. Arlong just tilted the odds in his favor by doing that. Fishmen become much stronger with water. As Luffy also got up and pulled the teeth out of his side, he was already looking around just as a dark fin appeared above the water. Memory Nami was screaming for him to look at the water.

"Wow! A shark!" he said eagerly and the Straw Hats sighed. Really? He hadn't noticed who it was?

Past Usopp almost fell over and yelled, "NO! THAT'S ARLONG!"

The fin suddenly disappeared and they were waiting for him to come out almost anxiously. Even the ones who knew what would happen were starting to grow worried as well. With the advantage of speed, Arlong launched himself like a torpedo, his attack Shark Darts increasing speed was able to break through all solid objects. Luffy was sent flying and crashed painfully on the ground as Arlong went smashing through an upper floor of the building.

Through the hole in the building, he stood there, still cocky. "Wow, I'm impressed you could dodge that!" Arlong proclaimed as Luffy looked up. "Good job. But the longer you evade death, the more painful it will be!"

"At least his death threats sound better than the other losers he's had to fight," Franky answered as the Fishman dashed down with another attack and landed like an arrow with his nose embedded in the concrete—posed there perfectly on his nose. Thankfully Luffy had been able to dodge it in time and Arlong's nose eventually broke through the solid stone. Pulling out to face Luffy, he went flying towards him again who narrowly missed a death shot, but there was still blood splattered. After a third failed attack, though Luffy was sent flying, Arlong dove back into the sea again.

The others were all screaming for him to hide before Arlong came back out as Luffy regained his footing, but he was shaking in anger as he declared that he wasn't going to hide this time.

"His brother is definitely a bad influence on him," Nami stated, remembering Ace's bad habit of not running.

"Stop being so stupid!" past Sanji yelled at him angrily, "Go run for cover before you become a target!"

"NO WAY!" Luffy yelled back stubbornly, "I'm not running anywhere! I'm gonna catch him and break his nose!" He turned to the water and yelled, "COME ON! YOU SHARK!"

"He really needs lessons in name-calling," Usopp whispered frustrated. But he was amused… Luffy said that he was going to catch him and break his nose and he totally did.

"Didn't you hear from us to go somewhere and hide?!" memory Usopp yelled at him furiously, "You barely escaped his last attacks! One direct hit will kill you! Luffy, listen to us! Go and hide!"

Ignoring him, Luffy took hold of his fingers, like he did when he was showing off his powers to Sabo—and stretched his fingers out. And then he cried out dramatically, "Gum Gum… SSSSHHHHHIIIIIEEEEELLLLDDDDD!"

"And that's also the last time I've seen him use that technique," Sanji said coolly. This time, when he came out flying out of the ocean, Luffy had stopped him in his tracks—his fingers stretching across his face, the saw-like nose only inches from his chest.

"YEAH! GO FOR IT!" Franky cheered on. Laughing as he avoided the attack, Luffy was now hanging onto the side of the building as Arlong came flying up at him; which he was able to stretch his fingers out like a net and caught him as if he was fishing before finishing it up with a Gum Gum Spear.

"In just a few moves, he turned this whole fight around!" Brook cried happily.

"Not yet," Nami said, remembering with a chill up her spine just what happened here. Here, it was the last straw; Arlong snapped, and his eyes change, to a wild, insane look… that similar to a monster.

"Oh no," memory Sanji stated uneasily, "It's the same expression that a Sea King makes just before they snap! He must've snapped with Luffy's last attack."

"I guess he finally went over the edge," Zoro said as the red veins were standing out in those cold eyes, his head swirling around wildly, trying to find him.

"His eyes…" past Nami whispered, her hands to her face, "I've never seen them like that."

It was true. Even now, she had shivers of cold going through her at seeing those horrible eyes. Here, he was no longer playing around, he was now out for blood. He was dead-set on killing Luffy even if he had to destroy everything else on the island to do that.

"YOU WRETCHED HUMAN!" screamed Arlong as he grabbed hold of Luffy by the head and swung him around like a lasso before slamming him into the building.

"I guess we know now if he's upset," Zoro said.

"How can you joke right now?" Chopper yelled.

"I'm not joking, just stating the truth," he answered as Luffy was sitting up. "Whoa! That was crazy," he said to himself, "It really didn't hurt but I can tell he's really like… madder."

"Mad nothing, he's nuts," Franky said as Arlong jumped towards him and then punched through the wall when Luffy stretched to safety. But judging how indifferent he was to this, they couldn't help but wonder if this was what Arlong had planned from the start. Now he fumbled his hand around for a moment inside, he knew the building well enough to know exactly what he was reaching for. And when he pulled his hand out, they saw just what it was that they stared at it. It was a giant black pole with six saw-toothed patterned black blades, resembling a shark's saw-like teeth with a katana's handle.

"THE SAW BLADE!" past Nami screamed.

"THAT THING'S GIGANTIC!" Johnny screamed as Yosaku screamed in terror.

"Yeah, I can imagine how much that would hurt if it hit you," Robin said calmly.

With a battle cry, Arlong was now determined to end it as he jumped to the first roof with Luffy having to jump higher and higher to avoid it all. Up and up they climbed, with Arlong destroyed everything in his way. On the top floor Luffy had finally ran out of room, but then noticed the window next to him and went diving towards it, smashing through the window.

The memory faded there but it came back almost instantly so that they were in the room where Luffy came crashing through the window with Arlong screaming up that he no longer has a place to run. They were in a room that was filled with maps—thousands of them were scattered everywhere in stacks… some of them still hanging from the ceiling as they were left to dry while there were shelves full of books and tools.

Nami's eyes widen as memories of this terrible place came back. The countless hours of being trapped inside this room and forced to draw map after map… hating each and every one of them as they were being used by Arlong. She had spent so much time here that her hands would bleed and she would cry herself to sleep every night… she had hoped that she would never have to see that again.

"What's this?" Chopper asked, looking around at them all. "All these maps…?"

"There's so many of them," Usopp said, looking around at the stacks—some were piled so high that they now stood larger than he was. Luffy was up and was now trying to catch his breath. "That was a little too close," he gasped.

Arlong came walking through, stepping on the shards of the broken window and glared at Luffy, the Saw-like blade still in his hand.

"There's nowhere else to run," Arlong said in a low voice. "You and me… here… the highest level of Arlong Park." He grinned evilly, and they knew that he was planning something terrible. "At last… the time of your death has come."

But Luffy was looking around at this place. "What is this room? Lot of paper."

"This isn't just any room," Arlong explained, "This is the room where I had Nami draw all of her sea charts for me."

The Straw Hats all turned to Nami, who was still frozen where she stood as she looked at the room with wide eyes. She was shaking as if cold.

"Nami?" Usopp whispered in worry when she didn't say anything else. But Robin shook her head at them all, letting them know that now wasn't the time. It was hard enough for Nami to be seeing this place again…

"This is Nami's room?" Luffy questioned now looking around with a more focused look.

"These sea charts are all that she's worked on for eight years," Arlong paused for a moment as he looked almost fondly at the maps. "Just look around you. These maps are more valuable than any amount of treasure. You see, to us Fishmen, collecting data about the ocean is a simple affair. But assembling that information into a usable chart is a difficult task. That's why we needed a navigator. In fact that's the soul reason why I'm so keen on keeping that woman in my possession. She's absolutely brilliant. The accuracy of her charts is beyond comparison."

"Like he deserved something so sacred from a lady," Sanji snarled. Luffy continued to blankly look around at everything. But Arlong didn't seem to be expecting an answer.

"She's too good for human trash like you," he went on, "Her talents should be used solely to build up the mighty Arlong Empire!"

"Empire? Please," Zoro said, "He'd been in the East Blue for eight years and what did he accomplish?"

Arlong pointed the weapon at him, still grinning, "Now listen. Nami _belongs_ to me!"

At those words, Nami felt as if she would be sick. Her hand was shaking as she held onto her tattooed arm, now having a good feeling to what the slaves of the Celestial Dragons must've felt. She wasn't anything to him but a tool… a slave to him. She shut her eyes tightly, trying to ride her mind of those terrible memories, and holding Robin's hand tightly to calm herself down.

"Is that so?" Luffy's voice suddenly said.

"And you're interfering in our business," Arlong said smugly, "You human scum!" Luffy narrowed his eyes dangerously as the Shark Saw was now being pointed at his head. He then sneered as he said slowly and carefully so that he couldn't hope to miss his words, "She's _not_ your friend!"

Luffy sat there for a moment without saying anything. But then…

"I don't care," he answered, still staring defiantly at him and Nami's eyes opened as she looked at him. "I don't care what you say," he said firmly as Arlong looked annoyed that he wasn't agreeing with him. But with his eyes not showing any signs of fear, Luffy declared loudly, "Because Nami is _our_ navigator!"

***Luffy***

"Ok," Ace said confidently as he cracked his knuckles together, still grinning with eagerness. "Let's get this over with."

Luffy and Ace were both facing each other in the clearing—feeling so nostalgic that Luffy couldn't stop smiling. Sabo had set out the old scoreboard and when Luffy saw it he could see final scores… Ace and Sabo were 26 to 24… it was just like no time had passed since they were kids and they were finishing up training for the day… underneath that score was him and Ace's… 49 to 0.

"This is the last fight," Sabo announced as he finished setting it up and looking back. "So no matter who wins or loses, I don't want to hear any crying! Especially from you Luffy!"

"I'm not that same kid anymore," Luffy declared, still grinning, "I've gotten a lot stronger since then!" but then he suddenly realized something. "Sabo? Aren't you gonna fight too?"

Sabo shook his head. "Nah, this has nothing to do with me anymore," but he didn't sound upset at all. "This is something that _you two_ need to do on your own. I'll be referee." He smiled as he walked towards the center of the circle and looked at them both sternly. "Now," he called out loudly, "I'll make this short and sweet. Right now, we're the only people on the island! You're allowed to go anywhere you want! Destroy whatever you want! And hit each other where you like! Anything goes!"

"No one else is here?" Luffy asked in surprise.

"This is a place where only the three of us exist," Ace explained with a grin. "If other people were here it'd mean they were dead too. But this is something that we need to settle on our own and others would just get in the way."

"Moving on," Sabo went on as if Ace hadn't spoken, "We all know the island by heart so no one will have an unfair advantage! You can choose to use your Devil Fruit powers or not! Just as long as you give it your all, that's all that matters! You can use anything to your advantage and feel free to use any tactic you want! The first person to fall down and stays down is the loser!"

Ace smirked. "Sounds fair to me," he said agreeable, moving his body sideways and tilted his hat back to get a better look at Luffy. "Let's get this over with."

Luffy looked back, grinning from ear to ear—his blood was racing and he felt that he was going to lose his mind if he had to wait any longer.

Ace noticed this and smirked as he asked, "You never change do you, Luffy? You've never been able to beat me before, what makes you think you can now?"

Luffy grinned even wider, his eyes shining with excitement. "Actually, I've changed a lot, Ace."

"In some way yes," Ace admitted, his fingertips starting to burn as Sabo moved back, waiting for them to finish speaking before he told them to start, "But in others, you're still my little brother."

A light breeze swept over the battlefield and blew through their hair as they moved their hats back so that they were hanging around their necks, safely out of the way. Sabo seemed to be enjoying himself as the other two were itching to fight—prolonging the waiting just to tease them. Both boys were continuing to stare down the other, their hearts racing and if they had to wait any longer they were going to lose all control and start pounding each other anyway.

"Back in the day I kept losing to you," Luffy proclaimed softly, "but now… I think I _can_ take you!"

Ace grinned wider than ever as Sabo looked between them and held his hand high. "Then come at me then!" he cried.

"BEGIN!" Sabo screamed out.

Luffy didn't waste any time as he shifted into his Second Gear. "I'm going all out right at the start!" he yelled, and he charged ahead as fire began to burn on his brother's skin. "I WON'T LOSE!"

**(How is it? I would've updated a few days ago, but those jerks in charge of Fanfiction deleted a few of my stories and I wasn't able to get into my account for a few days. But you know something that's always made me feel like I'm gonna cry? The fact that Luffy and Ace never did have another fight and for him to prove that he has grown stronger—he really did a lot of growing since Ace left home and he was training on his own. And then meeting his crew, going to the Grand Line, and everything else that happened? He wasn't the same little boy who needed Ace there all the time to keep him out of trouble. I think it's about time that he step up and really show them how far he's come. That, no matter what happens, that they don't need to worry about their little brother anymore. Also, I found out that I've been spelling Jimbei as Jinbe… I don't know which is right anymore but I'm going to settle for Jimbei from here on out.)**


	19. The Grand Line at Last

**Chapter 19: The Grand Line at Last**

"Because Nami is _our_ navigator!" proclaimed Luffy so loudly that his voice echoed through the room. Nami felt tears in her eyes, unable to think of anything she could possibly say to all that.

"You know it's true," Chopper told her firmly.

"I know," she said in a choked up voice. "I know all that… it's just… I never had anyone really fight for me like that… not since…?"

'_Not since Bell-mère,' _she added in thought and she rubbed her eyes on her arm—more glad than ever to have Robin there, patting her shoulder consoling.

"Well, you do now," Robin told her, understanding the feeling all too well. "Everything's alright now."

"Yeah," Nami agreed as Arlong chuckled darkly at what Luffy just said. "But those words mean a lot to me," she admitted softly.

"Really?" Arlong asked mockingly, "You want her to navigate your pathetic little ship for you? Ha… I guess you truly have no idea what a monumental waste of talent that would be." He gestured around to the maps in the room. "Look… there is no one else on the face of the planet who can draw sea charts with such accuracy and efficacy. That young lady has a gift."

Luffy kept looking around as Nami's eyes went to the desk… a small pen fell and clattered on the floor.

"What's that?" Chopper asked as Nami stared at it in horror. It was a pen that she had used for those eight miserable years… a pen that Arlong made her use until her hands bled and stained it. She had to bite down on her lower lip to stop her from crying out. She felt so stupid… getting so emotional just by seeing an old pen.

She stopped though when Luffy stretched his hand over to grab it and stare at it himself.

"And there isn't really anything as ultimately regrettable as wasting natural talent. Staying here and drawing up charts for me is her only chance of living up to her full potential!" Arlong declared.

"I think that there's nothing as regrettable as working for him," Sanji snarled and Nami had to nod in agreement. She regretted those eight wasted years and wanted to destroy each and every one of those maps… to see all her hard work go to Arlong just broke her heart. She rather see them all burn than in his hands.

Arlong and his pirates were her enemies; despite Arlong taking her into his crew she was never loyal to them due to what they did to her and her village. The reason she acted the way that she did was because he _wanted_ her to. But because he considered her as just another arrogant human, he seriously misjudged her character and it cost him. Seeing Luffy tear the building apart was one of her happiest memories. It was a long time in coming, but her hardships were finally over…

"What is with these guys bragging so much?" Franky asked with a sigh. He was getting so sick of hearing these guys go on and on about themselves… why not stop acting like they're the greatest things since sliced bread and just get on with fighting?

"Hurry up and kick his ass, Luffy!" Usopp cheered on, not getting why he was still fiddling around with some pen.

But Luffy spoke, he said in a quiet, but dark voice, "This pen… is stained with blood."

"Blood?" repeated Brook softly before he let out a soft intact of breath and looked to Nami.

"Nami is that…?" Sanji whispered to her softly, but anger clear in his voice.

Nami only nodded, unable to speak because she was afraid that she would break down completely if she did.

"That… bastard…" Sanji hissed furious. He gave Arlong a death glare, willing to give anything for just one fight with him. He ached to break that guy's face in and snap off his nose… how dare he…? HOW DARE HE HURT A WOMAN LIKE THIS? He turned furiously to Luffy and started yelling.

"LUFFY!" he suddenly yelled, starting the others at the outrage in his voice, "IF YOU DON'T HURRY UP AND BEAT THAT PIECE OF SHIT UP I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!"

But Arlong was continuing to boast, "In order for me to obtain world supremacy her sea charts are absolutely vital!" He took his Shark Saw and held it to Luffy's neck so that his neck was between two of the blades. "She _will_ continue drawing her sea charts for my own ambitions. And once her charts give me full knowledge of all the world's oceans, we Fishmen will be totally invincible! And the world shall kneel before us!"

"Pathetic," Zoro stated in disgust, shaking his head, "We were all strong back then, but nowhere near as we are now or as some of the others we've met out here. If even _we_ could take them all out before we even got to the Grand Line, they didn't stand a chance—they're stupid plan was doomed to fail."

"Thank goodness for that," Robin said, still smiling at Nami who nodded firmly by her side, now starting to get a hold of herself.

But Luffy still just sat there, holding the pen before he finally sighed.

"Come on, Luffy," Chopper said looking at him, "What's wrong? Why aren't you fighting?"

"He's upset by the fact that there's blood there," Brook explained and they looked at him. "I may never have been here, but I can sense the sadness in this room." They looked around and suddenly they could get what he was getting at. This was the room that had served as nothing but as Nami's prison and if Arlong had had his way, he would've kept her locked up in here for the rest of her life. They could almost feel the misery that Nami suffered in this room…

"It must've been so hard for you, Nami-san," Brook finished quietly. Nami was now letting the tears fall from her eyes again as she buried her face in Robin's shoulder.

"The first step is… this island! Then we'll move on to the whole East Blue!" Arlong continued to rant. "You can never use her like me. She would be wasted on you!"

"USE?!" Usopp repeated in outrage.

"YOU JERK!" Chopper screamed out furiously as Sanji flew into a rage and tried to kick him—and he kept going even when his foot when right through his head again and again.

Zoro and Robin were looking at Luffy, who had just put the pen carefully on the floor in front of him—almost reverently. Those words had struck a nerve and they could sense that there was something in him that was now filled with a great anger… they could feel it in the air even as Luffy very gently took hold of one of the blades on Arlong's Shark Saw. His head was down and no one could see his eyes.

Arlong kept smiling until it was wiped off his face. His arm was shaking slightly and he seemed to be completely confused to what was happening.

"What is it?" Franky asked, noticing the shaking, "Is he scared?"

"No," Robin said, "I think he's trying to move his weapon…"

"But Luffy's not letting it budge," Zoro added just as Luffy's fingers tighten on the blade—he could see that he was shaking too, but from anger not fear. Then, all of a sudden, Luffy broke the blade as easily as if it was made of glass.

"NO!" Arlong exclaimed in shock; so that he was left holding a blade with only two of the six blades left.

"Finally, Luffy starts getting serious," Sanji said, still breathing hard in anger as Nami looked up in time to see Luffy looking up. His expression was terrifying and the Straw Hats all felt their own spirits freeze at the look. There was no trace of his usual happy-go-lucky captain that they knew and love… not even the blank or usual angry look that he got when he was faced with an opponent. There was cold fury in on his face; a sense of a hidden power radiated from inside him as if there was a wildfire burning inside him.

"Luffy…?" Nami whispered in confusion.

"USE HER!?" Luffy repeated in a voice that was filled with as much rage as his face, "YOU BASTARD! WHAT THE HELL DO YOU TAKE HER FOR?!"

Nami's eyes widen as she watched, her hand to her mouth. But Arlong just laughed as he said, "She is an inferior creature, but she has risen far above her peers. If all other humans are sewer rats, then she's a feisty little kitten. After all, she is adorable."

Nami leaned closer to Robin who tightened her arms around her. "I suddenly feel sick," she muttered as Robin patted her hair.

"Then I have a feeling that you're going to be cheering up very soon," she whispered back.

"He's disgusting," Usopp whispered as Sanji cracked his knuckles together threateningly. Memories be damned. He was giving Luffy thirty seconds to kick Arlong's ass before he did something here.

"She has her place and its here beside me. Can't you understand that? I can give her everything she needs," Arlong said with a wide grin on his face.

"He means everything _except_ her freedom," Zoro stated bitterly.

"And all she has to do is continue to draw those marvelous charts for me!" Arlong finished. But what he said next raged them all to the core. "So, Nami will forever be my tool. No, she'll be my friend." He laughed again.

"DAMN YOU!" Sanji roared and raised his leg to kick again, but something stopped him. Finally, Luffy had gotten back to his feet, but instead of attacking Arlong he kicked the desk right through the wall.

Arlong stopped laughing and his grin was wiped off as if Luffy had kicked _him_. He blinked before he stared at the giant hole where they could see the desk hover in the air for a moment before it fell. Before he could register what happened, Luffy had kicked a bookshelf and one of the stacks of maps out as well.

"He's destroying the room!" Chopper whispered, eyes wide.

"I get it now…" Sanji said smiling, his frustrating with Luffy going at once. "You know… I remember seeing all that stuff get thrown out but I never understood the point till now."

"He's destroying everything that Arlong forced Nami to do," Robin answered when Chopper continued to look confused and he seemed to understand there.

"WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?!" Arlong screamed but Luffy completely ignored him as if he couldn't hear him as he continued his destruction of the room, making sure to take out as much as he could with every kick so that the sky was filled with paper.

"STOP IT NOW!" Arlong screamed as then waved what was left of his weapon at him, but Luffy easily dodged it so that Arlong ended up destroying an enormous stack of maps and he screamed, horrified at what he had done. "THE CHARTS!"

Once he landed, Luffy then kicked another stack out.

"My charts!" Arlong continued to yell as he watched all his plans and ambitions being destroyed before his eyes. His anger now growing out of his control, he finally pinned Luffy against a wall and held him there with his hand had his throat.

"He caught him!" Brook cried out worriedly.

"Damn you!" Arlong yelled, "That's eight years of work! Eight years of planning and ambition!"

"And that's as far as you're going to go!" Franky yelled out as Usopp and Chopper were now acting like cheerleaders, rooting for Luffy to take him out. Getting especially loud after Luffy stretched his arm out and used the back of his fist to take out more of the room and they could hear the books and papers smashing to the ground or splashing in the water below them.

Nami didn't react at all as she watched the entire scene. "I'm glad…" she whispered, "I always wished that I could destroy those maps… each time I finished making one for him it felt like he was ripping my heart out. Thank you… Luffy…" each chart that was thrown out made her feel as if she had gotten a day back from Arlong and she was now getting farther and farther away from him.

Enraged, Arlong snapped even further as he bit down on Luffy's neck. "Now you've gone too far!" Arlong yelled as blood sprayed everywhere.

"NO!" Chopper screamed in horror, "If he bites down to hard he could…?!"

"Don't worry," Zoro said firmly, "Luffy only needed some food and a good night's sleep before he was up on his feet again."

Luffy was growling with pain, but he didn't back down as bent his arms back so that he could grab Arlong by his nose behind his head and started to pull on it. "You keep jabbering on about—how much better—Fishmen are!" he said loudly, stuttering a little from pain, "And how much you—need those sea charts! I don't understand—anything about that stuff…" his hands started to bleed as he cut them on the sharp nose, "But I finally figured out… how to save her!"

With one huge heave, Luffy snapped Arlong's nose like a twig, causing the Fishman to scream in pain and as he opened his mouth to yell, he pulled his teeth out of Luffy's neck.

"You know… when I was fighting him before, he said that his nose was unbreakable," Zoro stated coolly, feeling good that someone finally destroyed that damn Fishman's ego.

"He's really gonna do it now!" Usopp cheered, knowing that they were getting to the moment they had been waiting for.

Luffy was still on his feet, his eyes wide, looking worse than ever before. For the first time, they could see a monster… he was like some kind of monster here… fighting like something… possessed. "This room isn't anything but her jail cell!" he declared with a hiss, "There's only one way for Nami to escape, I gotta tear this place apart!"

"GO FOR IT!" Chopper screamed.

"SSSSSUUUUUPPPPEEEEERRRRRR!" posed Franky eagerly, now practically giddy to see this next scene. Arlong glared up at him, looking ridiculous with his bent nose as Luffy lifted his leg and stretched it high, bursting through the roof and continuing… just like how he destroyed the Baratie's fin, they knew right away what was gonna happen. "Gum Gum…" he began but Arlong wasn't beaten yet.

"YOU FOOL!" Arlong yelled and was getting up.

"Oh, come on!" Sanji yelled as Arlong got back to his feet, "What's with Fishmen? What are they made of? Why doesn't he just stay down?!"

"Arlong Park cannot be brought down by some inferior human!" Arlong yelled as grabbed hold of his nose and straightened it with a sickening cracking sound, "Especially not by some rubbery freak like you!"

"Wanna bet?" Zoro asked with a smug smirk as Luffy looked up at Arlong in irritation.

"Shark Tooth… DRILL!" Arlong screamed out before he jumped and began to spin like a propeller—or even a drill—towards him, his teeth bared. Luffy's eyes widened in terror but he managed to finish the attack as he brought his foot down… "BATTLE AXE!"

Arlong's teeth sank deeply into his side just as Luffy's foot came down and slammed his face to the floor. For a moment, they were there… frozen as they stared at what happened. It was almost as if time had stopped here, but then the floor began to break apart. With Luffy's scream in their ears they watched as the force of the attack was so great that Arlong started to cough up blood just before Luffy's foot slammed him down floor after floor of Arlong Park and hit the ground with an almighty boom.

Everyone was left in awe for a moment before Chopper began to scream in joy. "HE DID IT! HE BEAT HIM!"

"Was there ever a doubt?!" Usopp yelled, but then he stopped smiling when he suddenly remembered something else. As Luffy retracted his leg the rest of the building was starting the collapse. The walls crumbled and the roof was falling in.

"NO, GET OUT OF THERE!" Franky yelled, but it was too late, Luffy just didn't seem to get to the hole he made in the wall in time. The ceiling gave way and the floor broke apart as he fell through it. The noise around them was so loud that it was as if they're eardrums would burst… but as they covered them, but then everything went dark around them as the night sky came back.

"What… that's it?! What happened?! Was Luffy-san okay?" Brook asked them all in worry—realizing they were back on the dark shores and right at the water's edge. But before they could give him a real answer, the ground beneath them began to shake and they caught sight of the water's edge bubbling slightly. Something was boiling beneath the waves…

"What's going on?" Usopp yelled out, going for his slingshot, expecting some kind of sea monster to rise out. However, Zoro and Sanji both were ready for a fight, charged forward towards the water—for now something was slowly rising out of the sea like a black ball of slime.

"I think we finally found it!" Zoro said grinning evilly as he flicked his sword out and put on in his mouth. "It's here!"

"What is it?!" Chopper screamed out nervously, running behind them at top speed.

The blob was about the size of a large cannonball—it was bubbling and shifting around as it hovered in the air for an agonizing second before it hit the beach with enough force that it flattened out to form a pool of gunk.

"That's disgusting!" Nami yelled, stepping back from it at once. She couldn't remember seeing something so gross-looking. But out of the pool of slime, it was being concentrated together… until something began to rise up out of it. First there was a fin, and then its shoulders… and finally its head with a saw-like nose appeared. And they knew what it was… or rather _who_ it was…

The form of Arlong—so black that it was as if he had been dipped in tar—rose out of the slime and was placed on his feet like some kind of puppet.

"Arlong…?" Nami whispered as the dark form set foot on shore, the giant blade over his shoulder as he grinned.

"You inferior humans!" he said and that voice sent a silent wave of terror down her spine as the shadow form of Arlong charged at her. But Zoro and Sanji intercepted him, both of them striking at the same time.

"Finally!" Zoro hissed, his blade holding back the saw blade. "I can hit him."

"Thank God for that," Sanji admitted, "I've been aching to break this guy's face in all this time."

"Fishmen… are… superior!" the shadow Arlong growled, but something happened next. As everyone all turned, ready for a fight… each with their weapons raised, all waiting for a chance to attack… Arlong's body was starting to melt where it stood.

"NOW WHAT?!" Usopp yelled as Chopper screamed in horror.

"He's melting!" Chopper cried out as Arlong slopped over like how a snowman would in the hot sun.

He was right. Like a broken record this Arlong kept repeating the words that he had been saying to Luffy during the fight—how Fishmen were better, how he was going to rule the whole East Blue—but his actions were sluggish and the bubbling form fell to his knees and soon collapsed into a pool of liquid.

"Okay…" Franky said carefully, lowering his hand of his finger guns. "What the _hell_ was that?"

"That was the creature?" Usopp asked before smirking, "It wasn't that tough…"

But then the concentrated jelly suddenly came back to life and pulled back into the black ball and hovered in the air. "I got this!" Usopp said confidently and he launched a Bamboo Shoot Pop Green at it… they rose up at once and skewered it.

"GOT YA!" he yelled striking a pose, but to his horror, the blob—that had been torn apart by the rising bamboo's—came back together.

"It's like that Swamp guy!" Chopper yelled, remembering the weirdo they met when they went down to Fishman Island.

"A Logia, huh?" asked Sanji smugly as he set his lower leg on fire and charge, ready to kick. He smashed through it, but at the same time it reformed itself.

"What is this thing?!" Brook cried out in panic as Zoro now tried to cut it, but it did as much good as the others. Suddenly the blob turned and bolted down the shore.

"After it!" called Zoro as they started to run; Franky was shooting balls of fire and Usopp launched several Lead Stars and even some random Pop Greens, but the blob reformed no matter what was thrown at it.

"Damn it!" Sanji yelled frustrated as the ball of slime suddenly disappeared into thin air.

With nothing to chase, they all skidded to a stop and stared around for it.

"What happened? Did we do it?" Chopper yelled, looking around, but seeing nothing there.

"It's gone," Zoro said angrily. "Damn it! As soon as it appeared I could _sense_ it, but now nothing!"

"It just went away," Sanji agreed, wanting to smash something to take his anger out.

"Well… you think… we killed it?" Brook asked hesitantly.

"Did you see any of those attack do any good?" Robin asked him seriously, closing her eyes and trying to see around the island for any trace of it.

"Well, what was it? What's happening to this island?!" Usopp yelled, more lost than ever before. No one was able to answer as they looked at each other—having once thought that they were alone—but having a bad feeling that they were also being watched.

Nami hugged herself as she stared around, half expecting to see that decrypted form of Arlong appear and grab her. She hung back, making sure that the others were around her trying to get her breathing under control. But as they fruitlessly continued to search the landscape, the dark sky faded abruptly and they were back outside Arlong Park—or what was left of it. It looked as if a giant had come and stepped on it. Like a house of cards, there was just large slabs of the building piled one on top of the other.

"Wait, how'd we get back out here?!" Nami gasped, not understanding what was going on, but they heard voices and looked to see that everyone had come back, staring at what remained of Arlong Park and they were distracted by the distraught expressions on everyone's faces.

The Straw Hats tried to stay focused on everything that happened, but it was difficult as they looked at the destroyed building and the waiting anticipation… though they knew that Luffy was alive and well, it was always hard to tell themselves that when they witnessed for themselves what happened. Sanji and Zoro were both still stalking around, trying to sense something wrong.

But suddenly the top of the rubble was move and Luffy burst through so that he was standing on top of the remains. No one spoke as they all stared at him—though he didn't say a word, their eyes were all drawn to him as if he had shouted.

Luffy then took a deep breath and yelled out, "NAMI!"

Present-day Nami knew what he was going to say but the words echoed in her head as he finished screaming out, "NAMI YOU'LL ALWAYS BE MY FRIEND!"

His declaration echoed up and through the sky and the present-day Nami finally lost all control of herself as she began sobbing without any shame. Her past self was standing nearby, and she was crying as well. "Yeah…" was all she could say. What else was it that she could here?

When she first met him, she had been so sure that he was just like any other pirate… but she soon came to respect him as a leader. Though she gets angry at his irrational thinking and short attention span, she had come to care and trust him very much as her captain. He had been something of an emotional anchor for her during crisis… that idiot…

It slowly dawned on all the memory versions what just happened as they were all screaming in joy. All of them cheering and crying as well… finally, their nightmare was over. And the last thing they heard before the memory faded was Johnny and Yosaku screaming out, "BIG BRO WON!"

The memory was then gone and Nami was now wiping up her tears, but she was still smiling.

"That was amazing…" Brook whispered in awe. "I've never seen anything like that. I don't ever remember seeing Luffy-san so angry! It shocked me to the soul…"

"Can't say that it wasn't a good sight," Sanji said, looking over at Nami who had composed herself and seemed to be back to normal.

"I'm tired of crying," she whispered, sounding more upbeat. "I guess after seeing everything from the beginning just brought back all those memories and feelings…"

"Are you going to be alright?" Robin asked soothingly and she nodded back.

"I'm fine," she said, sounding more sure of herself. "I just… I didn't think I'd ever be free from Arlong. But Luffy just understood everything without having to hear anything else… he destroyed everything that I wanted to see destroyed since day one." She looked to Zoro, Sanji, and Usopp and added with a bright smile, "And you guys too, of course!"

"It was my greatest pleasure, Nami-swan!" Sanji gasped out, twirled around so that he knelt before her. "My darling… if I had to, I'd do it all again for you! There can be no greater honor for a man to help out a beautiful lady!"

"Gag me," Zoro said, walking away.

"What was that?!" Sanji yelled, but Zoro completely ignored them as he continued to look around and Sanji remembered what it was that they were supposed to be doing and he growled in frustration. "Just when we finally find the thing, it runs away and disappears! And I keep getting distracted by all this!"

"It makes sense for it to," Robin said frowning before she asked Nami what time it was.

Blinking in surprise, she pulled out the pocket watch and checked the time, convinced that it had to have been at least half an hour, but her jaw fell open when she saw that it had only about ten minutes.

"That can't be," Usopp said but Robin shook her head in disagreement.

"I had a feeling that this was the case," she explained.

"Please tell me that you're going to start making sense here," Franky begged.

"Well, first," she said, "About the creature we just saw. It had no form… it was trying to take on Arlong's shape… but it just couldn't seem keep it."

"Yeah, it was like it was made of clay or something and it was melting," Usopp admitted thinking it over. "It was just messed up… but what really freaked me out was that it repeated whatever Arlong was saying."

"And then it disappeared as we went after him," she summed up. When they nodded, she explained, "That's because it wasn't able to hold onto Arlong's shape. So when it failed on it, it fled and probably hid itself in another memory. I think that it was only a rough idea of Arlong. Remember all the memories we saw up to this point? I guess that the creature has only started to try and take a form when we finally came across it."

"So it was hiding somewhere in the Arlong Park memories?" Chopper asked.

"Yes," she admitted softly, "And I think it's safe to assume that it might've listened to Arlong enough times to try and become him. But I guess that it didn't stay around long enough before we caught up to it and it tried to fight back."

"And when it tried to attack us, it wasn't able to stay like that and is probably hiding in another memory!" Chopper said, thrilled with himself for getting it.

Robin nodded, "That seems to be it."

"So… what now?" Brook asked her, "We just keep going through memories until we find it?"

"Right now it's hiding," Sanji said in frustration, "And until it comes back out, we won't have the slightest clue where it is."

"But if it does come back, what are we supposed to do?!" cried out Nami, "Nothing we did worked on that!"

"Not even Haki," Zoro added darkly.

"But that doesn't explain the whole time thing," Franky added, "I mean, how could it only be a few minutes? It's been hours!"

Robin looked over at him. "Time's not moving as fast as we think it is," she answered simply.

"Say what?" Usopp repeated, completely lost.

"What I mean is that creature has something to do with our sense of time," she shrugged, "I know it's crazy, but it's the best I can come up with. We think that time is moving normally inside the memories, but in reality, it's hardly moving at all."

"Huh? I don't get it," Chopper said, completely lost now.

"Well," she said, trying to think of the best way to describe it. "When we're watching it all, it's like time is slowed down a little. So we think that time is moving normally for us when it's actually hardly any time at all. At least, that's what I think."

"So when we watch for a few hours, it's only been a couple minutes?" Franky summed it up, "So everything we saw up till now took _less_ time for us to watch than for someone to say 'get a haircut'?"

"Pretty much," Robin offered. "It's all very confusing… but that's the best that I can come up with."

"This whole place is a nightmare," Usopp moaned out, falling to his knees. "Let's just get this thing dealt with so that we can get Luffy back and get the hell out of here!"

"No one is disagreeing with you Usopp," Zoro said, flicking his sword out irritably. This whole place was driving him crazy—and giving him an urge to slash something. He was growing angrier with every second and was now close to wanting to kill something. He was quickly losing his mind…

But then, the memory reappeared and they were back in Cocoyashi village with an enormous party going on. The villagers were all dancing and feasting, music and laughter was in the air, and every single person here was smiling.

"Now you know how much they hated them if they're celebrating like this," Robin offered with a smile as she looked around.

"Yohohoho, what a great thing to see! It brings joy to my heart! Not that I have a heart," Brook laughed.

"No one had been able to celebrate like this in years," Nami smiled as she looked around at her village. "I think they partied for about three days here."

"Really? Three days?" Franky laughed, "It sounds like my kind of party!"

"They danced until they all passed out where they stood," Sanji sighed, remembering all the beautiful girls that he danced with… oh, good times…

"I notice that we usually do party for about three days after we have a big fight," Chopper pointed out cheerfully.

"Hey, if you're going to have a party why not go all out?!" Usopp cried out brightly.

But through all the laughing and cheering, they could also hear screaming going on inside a house behind them.

"What's going on?" Robin asked in interest.

"That's the doctor's house," Nami said thoughtfully as Zoro sighed, recognizing the screaming.

"Ignore it," Zoro said at once.

But at those words, Sanji knew at once that he was talking about and went right for the house. "HEY GET BACK HERE!" Zoro yelled, but too late, soon everyone was going through and they saw who the screaming was coming from and why.

"Oh, ow…" Franky winced. Zoro was getting stitches.

"Well, at least someone is finally taking charge and treating your wound!" Chopper said firmly.

"You dumbass!" the doctor snapped as Zoro was gritting his teeth and moving painfully around on the bed as Johnny and Yosaku slept in the background, "Did you think this would heal on its own? Seriously, pirates are supposed to be smarter than this!"

"That's exactly what I'm thinking! How stupid could you get?" Chopper agreed firmly and Zoro shoved the reindeer's head down to the ground with his foot. "WHAT WAS THAT FOR?!" he yelled.

"Did you just say that I'm stupid?" Zoro asked coldly.

"Wow, for someone who's stupid, you sure understood it quickly enough," Sanji smirked.

Zoro swung a sword at him as the doctor shoved his hand in memory Zoro's face to keep him still as he continued stitching. "Don't you have a doctor for this?"

"Nope, but that's who joined us next," Nami said and Chopper brightened up, excited at the idea of finally seeing Drum again. He tried not to smile, but his grin shone through anyway as he did a little dance. "What I don't get is why you're complaining like this," Nami went on and turned to Zoro. "I mean… after Mihawk attacked you, you barely flinched… but here you're almost crying."

"I am not!" Zoro snapped back.

"You and Luffy can pull off gaping holes in your guts but stitches and needles make your cringe?" Usopp asked thinking that over. "How does that make sense?"

Just then a familiar face appeared in the window above Zoro's head, with a leg of meat in his hand, and he repeated, "Doctor? Never thought of that. Good idea!"

"Luffy?" past Zoro said in surprise.

"But we need to get a musician first right?" Luffy asked, as if making sure that he got it.

"Why's that?" he asked him.

"Cause pirates really like to sing," he said as if it was obvious.

"To true! Yohohoho!" Brook laughed joyfully, feeling a little warm thrill inside at the idea of how much they wanted a musician.

Zoro actually laughed at that and sounded sarcastic as he said, "That's true, but why is that first?"

Luffy didn't answer, but he grinned at him before he looked up to the doctor and asked where Nami was—claiming that she wasn't in the village.

"Where were you?" Chopper asked in surprise, "I thought you'd be there partying with everyone else."

"I had to go somewhere to think some things through," she confessed. In truth, she wanted her mother's advice. She wanted to go and tell her about what she wanted to do… she remembered how she met with Nojiko and Genzo… how they gave her the advice that she needed to hear. Though, in truth, she had already made up her mind by that point.

"Well then," the doctor said, looking away as he thought it all over, "If she's not in the village, there's only one place she'd go…"

The memory faded at that and they were all looking at each other in surprise. "That's it?" Chopper said, feeling a little bit let down at the small scene.

"I… guess?" Usopp pressed, Nami hesitated for a moment before the scene came up again—but it was still a dark night around them so they didn't realize that it had change until they saw Genzo there. They were on a cliff that overlooked the ocean—a bright moon was reflected in the sparkling sea below them, and there was a very simple grave raised there with a wooden cross. Genzo had poured an entire bottle of sake over it, as if the one who was buried there could enjoy it as well.

Nami bit her lip, never thinking that she would see it again.

"What is this?" Zoro asked in confusion.

"That's… my mother's grave," Nami explained softly. She has come to terms with the idea that Bell-mère was her mother. In life she never saw eye to eye with her adoptive mother at times, but she never realized just how important she was too her until the moment that she knew that she was going to be killed. She loved her mother deeply and missed her every single day.

"Your mother?" Robin repeated softly and Nami nodded as everyone looked at her in surprised.

"This was where I was earlier," she confessed quietly, "I wanted to talk with her."

"Nami…" Chopper said quietly as they all looked at the grave with new respect—and a little sadness. It was very peaceful for a few quiet moments, but that soon ended when someone yelled out, "WHERE'S THE FOOD!?"

Jumping, they looked back to see Luffy there, looking around—his cheeks full of meat—as well as having several legs of it in his hands. Genzo had also jumped and spun around to see who it was.

"He always did know how to break the mood," Sanji sighed.

Luffy was barely aware that he wasn't alone as he looked for food."Oh, no food out here," he said to himself, sounding disappointed before he turned around and muttered something about leaving.

But as they watched, Robin couldn't help but wonder if Luffy had come up here _just_ for food. Did he come up here looking for Nami as well? She shrugged to herself, maybe she was trying to read too much into Luffy's behavior and maybe he was simply for food and he got lost. But she couldn't help but get the sneaking suspicion that maybe he was hoping to talk to Nami here.

"Wait, boy!" Genzo suddenly shouted, stopping Luffy so that he would look back and they looked over at him.

"Huh, a grave?" Luffy asked before he asked tactlessly, "Did somebody died?"

"You think he would be a little more sensitive here," Usopp said with a sigh.

"I'm afraid that's not one of Luffy's strong points," Zoro reminded him as Genzo turned back to look at the wooden cross and admitted to Luffy that someone did die a long time ago.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Luffy said, bowing his head—though it probably would've been easier to take him seriously if he took the food out of his mouth first. "I give you to my conveniences…"

"What?" Franky asked in confusion before Luffy realized that he said it wrong and tried again.

"Wait… my sincere compliments… no my deepest…?" he said several times before Genzo corrected him.

"My deepest condolences," he said.

"Oh, so that's what he was saying," Chopper said, who hadn't been getting it before.

"Yeah, thanks," Luffy said.

"Listen boy," Genzo said, still not looking away but his voice was very serious, "I know Nami is going away with you. She has her mind set on becoming a pirate and that… dangerous business. And I'm fine with that, it can't be helped."

"Genzo…" Nami said softly, having had no idea that Luffy and Genzo had talked about this. But what he said next surprised them all.

"But if any of you do anything to hurt her… I will kill you," Genzo said, his voice deadly serious.

"Boy, that's harsh," Franky said, suddenly nervous as he glanced at Nami. "He only means Luffy right?"

"He did say _any_ of us," Sanji said, thinking it over. Not that he had to worry—he rather throw himself overboard than do anything to make Nami said.

"Nami?" Chopper said quickly, "If I ever did anything that made you sad, I'm sorry!"

Nami only laughed. "He wouldn't go that far," she said before she added, "At least I hope not."

"We're not gonna hurt her…" Luffy said to him firmly.

But Genzo spun around and yelled out at the top of his lungs, "YOU SURE?!"

Luffy looked startled at that before he nodded, "I'm sure."

"So I guess we're stuck with her," Zoro said as Genzo moved his cap back down so that they couldn't see his eyes, but a satisfied smile was tugging at the scarred man's lips—as if he just had a hard question answered for him. The images faded around them and that was the end of that memory.

"I guess he just wanted to make sure that you were in good hands," Robin told her as Nami smiled widely at that.

"I know… he's always been like that," she said, missing Genzo more than ever. So even before she left, he was looking out for her. The fact that he would have had this little talk with Luffy meant the world to her. She really hoped that she could go home someday and show them her map of the world…

Suddenly the sun was out and they were back at the docks. The four past Straw Hats were already on the deck of the Going Merry as they began piling on crates and boxes of food and supplies. It looked like the whole island had come to say goodbye.

"Oh, so this must be when you were finally setting off!" Brook said cheerfully just as past Sanji had run to the side of the ship. "THERE SHE IS!" he screamed out, barely able to contain himself. Looking up, they saw past Nami standing far along the road and everyone was looking directly at her. Her eyes were hidden by bangs before she screamed out, "SET THE SAILS!"

And suddenly she started sprinting towards them as if she was being chased by something.

"What's wrong?" Franky asked in confusion, not getting why she was running all of a sudden.

"I don't get it," past Usopp said, unknowingly speaking what Franky was asking, watching her sprint towards them, "Why's she running?"

"She said set sail," Luffy reminded him and he jumped a little at the seriousness in his tone.

"But what's going on?" Chopper asked as present-day Zoro and Usopp both looked at each other with raised eyebrows.

"I just wanted to say goodbye in my own way," Nami said, a little sheepishly. After all the years of her coming and going to the village, with them looking at her with distain, it felt strange for her to leave without seeing that again.

"NO!" Genzo suddenly cried out as he Nojiko and the doctor all looked surprised at Nami. "She's planning on leaving without letting any of us thank her or say goodbye!"

"You didn't want to say goodbye to any of them?" Brook asked her in surprise. "I would've thought…?"

"I did in the end," she said with an innocent smile that didn't fool anyone.

"Set sail!" Luffy yelled and they did as Zoro pulled up the anchor—soon they were moving away from the dock.

"Wait! Don't go!" someone screamed.

"They're leaving!"

"Stop! At least let us say goodbye!"

Past Nami didn't respond to any of their words as she continued to sprint with the citizens trying to stop her. Genzo fought his way through to the front, "NAMI!" he yelled, "COME BACK HERE! YOU CAN'T LEAVE THIS WAY!"

"We all say goodbye in our own way," Robin chuckled lightly.

"So," past Sanji said to Luffy, "You sure you wanna let her leave like this?"

"Not my decision," Luffy told him, "She does what she wants."

"That is true," Usopp nodded as they sailed farther and farther away, with Nami now in danger of being left behind. But they didn't need to worry. Past Nami started to run between them all zig-zag, diagonal, up and down… she ran past all of them all, slipping away without any trouble—thanks to her years of stealing. Once she passed the doctor and her sister she jumped, almost flying through the air, just barely made it to the ship.

"WHY?!" Genzo cried out as she landed on the Merry's deck. Breathing hard, she didn't move for a moment before she pulled back her shirt to show dozens of wallets and coin purses falling out. At that they all checked their pockets and realized that she stole from each of them.

"You didn't…?" Robin asked, now unable to hold back her laughter.

"Well, I left the eight years worth of money I stole with them, so it was the least they could do," she offered, laughing with her, her heart feeling so light all of a sudden.

Some of the men all looked at each other with raised eyebrows—she was definitely someone to keep your eye on… she would bleed you dry if she had a chance.

Her past self was pulling out some of the money, she kissed it before looking back with a smug smirk, "Thanks a bunch!"

The looks on each of their faces was priceless.

"DAMN! YOU LITTLE BRAT!" Genzo shouted as their jaws all dropped.

"Well, that explains why you wanted to leave the way you did, Yohohoho," Brook laughed. "If you had waited, they might've noticed that their pockets had all been picked."

"And I thought _I _left with a lasting impression at my hometown," Franky said.

"You did," Usopp reminded him as his past self whispered to Zoro darkly, "Great. She hasn't changed a bit."

"I'd watch my back if I were you," past Zoro agreed, giving Nami a shady look. But Luffy was laughing as Sanji gave her a thumbs up.

"Of course you'd two find it funny," Zoro said in annoyance.

"I think you said it best, Zoro," Robin spoke up, smiling at him, "It's a fitting way for pirates to leave. Unable to turn back seeing how everyone here hates us…?"

He thought it over before he let out a bark of laughter, "Yeah, I suppose."

"YOU LOUSY PICKPOCKT!" Genzo cried out, "WE'LL MISS YOU!"

"And I miss them too," Nami sighed.

But then Genzo suddenly yelled at Luffy and got their attention. "BOY?" Luffy looked back up, as he finished by yelling, "REMEMBER WHAT I TOLD YOU!"

Luffy just smirked and gave him the thumbs up. "You got it!"

Nami felt her heart warm at that as her past self began to scream out, waving goodbye, "GOODBYE EVERYBODY I'LL MISS YOU! TAKE CARE!"

Nami stood there the whole time, smiling at the disappearing land, and she looked up to the cliff where she could just make out her mother's grave. Her past self then turned to the rest of the crew and said, "Now that that's over with, I say it's about time we head off to the Grand Line!"

Everyone cheered and started to laugh together—glad that was finally over. The images faded but Nami was also laughing with them. To laugh about such little things—to do that every day was something she always wished for.

"I'm so happy for you, Nami-san!" Brook proclaimed happily as he spun around.

"It touches my heart," Franky sniffled as he held his nose down for three seconds and ended up creating a long hair and he tied it back in a cool ponytail.

"I'm just glad that we're done with it all," Nami sighed, her hand over her own heart, feeling it beating hard against her chest. She made a mental note to thank Luffy again once they headed back to the sea.

The next memory was another beautiful day and the whole crew was relaxing on the Merry's deck. Nami was stretching out on a lawn chair as Usopp sat there, mixing together some of his infamous Tabasco Stars. Zoro was on the upper deck and taking a nap, and after looking around for a minute, they spotted Luffy cautiously reaching for some tangerines that had been put on the top of the cabin.

"Wouldn't do that if I were…" Usopp tried to warn, but it came too late.

Sanji came out of nowhere and kicked him so hard that he was flung backwards right into Usopp—who had some of it get splashed into his eyes.

"That's gonna sting," Franky winced as past Usopp was screaming and running around in pain.

"Oh, the pain I had to endure here!" Usopp cried out, remembering the pain, it was as if his eyes had been on fire.

Luffy however was glaring up at Sanji and yelled, "Ah, come on! I just want one of them!"

"NO!" Sanji yelled, standing there in front of the trees like a bodyguard, his arms folded. "This is Nami's tangerine orchard! I won't let anyone lay a finger on it!" He then turned to Nami with his eyes as hearts and cried out, his arms now wide, "Nami can you see how well I'm protecting your trees?!"

"Yes," she said, without turning to look at him, "You're doing very well."

"He's like some kind of pet to her," Usopp whispered to them and they nodded. Sanji, who hadn't been listening as he drooled over the past Nami, looked up and said, "What'd you say?"

"Nothing," Usopp said quickly.

"Can't you tell when someone's using you, Nosebleed?" Zoro asked him darkly.

"What? How dare you claim that Nami-swan would use me!" Sanji yelled heatedly. "Everything I do…" he added dramatically, "I do for love!"

"Yes, and you do an amazing job taking care of my tangerines," Nami told him and he almost fell over in happiness. Robin shook her head fondly, a part of her feeling a little bad for Sanji—but that chivalry of his was something that she always admired about him even if it did get him into so much trouble.

Soon, past Nami was still going over the paper as Luffy sat up on the railing, looking hungrily up at the fruit as Usopp lay on his back with a cool cloth to his red eyes.

"I only want one tangerine!" Luffy whined. "Just give it here! You're so mean!" he stuck his tongue at him.

"NO!" Sanji yelled again.

"He can have one… for a price," Nami said firmly. Those were from her mother's tangerine orchard and she wasn't going to part with them easily.

"Oh well," Luffy said, beaming widely, "I'm pretty happy anyway."

"Nothing fazes him for long," Brook said fondly.

"The world sure is a turbulent place," past Nami suddenly stated, telling them what she was reading. She flipped the page and a stray piece of paper fell out.

"What's that?" Luffy asked just as it fluttered to the deck and they saw what it was.

"Oh, I know this!" Usopp said as their past versions all gasped at what they saw and soon they were all screaming—some of them were joyous—or horrified.

"What's wrong?" Franky asked startled as Luffy jumped up and picked it up to stare at it. His eyes were as big as dinner plates as he stared at it and held it up for them all to see—laughing out proudly. "Alright guys! We're wanted criminals!"

"His first bounty," Zoro said with a smirk. "Before we even entered the Grand Line, he had the highest bounty in the whole East Blue."

Past Usopp leaned over to look at it, "Wanted: dead or alive… thirty million?!"

"Such an amazing first bounty!" whispered Brook in amazement. "Thirty million right off the bat for a Rookie Pirate?"

"Earning a large bounty in a quick time also gives the pirate notorious attention and a global reputation," Robin commented. "After all, I believe that Boa Hancock earned a bounty of Eight million in a single pirate attack after she became the captain of the Kuja Pirates and the World Government offered her to become a Warlord."

"Eight million in one journey?!" repeated Nami in awe.

"What'd she do?!" Usopp asked with a gulp as horrible images came back to his mind and he added quickly, "On… on second thought, I don't think I want to know!"

"Occasionally, a designated amount on a bounty may increase if the criminal in question has committed crimes of considerable magnitude that goes beyond the crime committed beforehand that earned them their initial bounty, as with the case of Luffy," Robin confessed, thinking it all over. "Usually, bounties are treated as a way to determine a person's average threat level."

"Yeah, but it's been two years since our own bounties increased," Zoro smirked, "It's only gonna be a matter of time before they go up again big time."

Sanji felt a muscle going in his head at the thought of his bounty picture. God, he prayed that he get a new picture soon… just thinking about that poster makes him sick to his stomach.

"The average bounty in the East Blue is three million, so a noteworthy one there would be ten million or more," Nami said, thinking it all over.

"And Luffy-san's first bounty was 3 times that!" Brook proclaimed proudly.

"Yes, and in terms of piracy, any rookie who have earned a bounty of over a hundred million is considered impressive, and is classified as a 'Supernova'," Robin finished lightly. "The eleven pirates who arrived at Sabaody two years ago are called the Eleven Supernovas. Plus with Blackbeard, the 12 are now known as The Worst Generation."

"Really?" Zoro said, grinning, knowing that he was one of those and smirked smugly at Sanji who was looking more annoyed than ever before.

"For Luffy, his first bounty broke the record for active East Blue bounties, as well as the highest new bounty for a pirate from the East Blue," Robin chuckled, thinking back to reading up on Luffy when she was still working with Crocodile. "As well as holding the highest value of known bounty increases from thirty million to four hundred million… and even the highest amount of times of getting a new bounty, after all, he received three bounties increase before we even reached Sabaody and a fourth after the war."

"That is SUPER!" Franky burst out laughing. "I guess all our crazy stunts pay off big time huh?"

Nami sighed, wondering just what they thought why it was something to celebrate? Just how was it considered good to have such high bounties calling in bounty hunters and Marines after them day in and day out?

"That's a whole lot of beri's!" Luffy cried out still laughing.

"Check it out!" past Usopp cried out, pointing at it as a dreamy look came over his face, "I'll be seen all around the world!"

"WHAT?!" memory Sanji screamed out, staring at it, "THEY PUT LONG-NOSE IN BUT LEFT ME OUT?!"

"Yeah, the best view of his face," present-day Sanji hissed.

"Don't be jealous just because your poster is so bad," Usopp pointed out and Sanji let out a roar of anger—looking like he wanted to break something at the horrid reminder.

His memory self was looking all over the poster, now demanding to know where he was because he couldn't see him. Past Usopp pointed in the lower corner where the back of his head was and began to laugh as Sanji sat on the deck to pout. "It's the back of your head! That's not so great."

"And I still hold true to that," Sanji said angrily, now fighting the urge to sit and pout as well.

Past Usopp giggled and said, "Aww, don't be so glum! You don't have to be a captain to get your picture on one of these things."

Memory Sanji cheered up almost at once. "Is that true?" he asked excitedly.

"Yeah, in the end, I'm the one who causes the most trouble," Sanji said determinedly and Zoro rolled his eye.

"Yeah," memory Usopp said, "Just work really hard."

"And that's a lot coming from you," Zoro said to him.

"Hey! I can be pretty damn helpful if I put my mind to it!" Usopp snapped back.

But then, the three memory versions of themselves were all celebrating and dancing as Nami looked like she wanted to crack their heads together.

"LET'S GO TO THE GRAND LINE MEN!" Luffy shouted out and the other two cheered along.

"Yet again, you guys don't understand how grim our situation really is!" past Nami yelled at them before she slapped her hand to her head, "This means all of our lives will be in constant danger!"

"And that's different from how you guys always are how…?" Franky asked her as she sighed tiredly, wondering just what she got herself into here. But as the trio partied, they saw a worn-out ship go sailing by and they were startled to see Fullbody there. Just as they registered what they saw, the battered ship did a complete 180 and turned back towards them—pulling up next to them with Fullbody shouting out that they were doomed.

"The first of many people coming after us for those bounties," Nami sighed as the memory faded there.

"What happened?" Chopper asked, looking up at them all.

"What do you think?" Zoro asked him with a yawn. "He tried to come after us but he was as pathetic as ever."

"Yeah, he almost wet himself when he saw Sanji," Usopp said thinking back and laughing. Sanji smirked at that, remembering hearing the noise outside and went to see what was going on. He didn't even have to kick his ass to get him to leave.

Soon they were back on the Merry's deck, and the five of them were all on the upper deck with Nami pouring over the map and find a way to the Grand Line.

"We're getting closer," she informed them. "We've almost made it to the Grand Line and it looks like the only way through is here… Reverse Mountain."

"What a pain," Zoro said in an irritable voice as he watched Nami point to the large mountain. "There's got to be some way around that thing."

"There's no need, you go up and over it!" Brook cried out happily, thinking of the stormy night that he and his crew went over Reverse Mountain.

"Over it?" asked Chopper in surprise, "I heard you guys mention that before, but how does a ship go over a mountain?"

"Well, I'm sure you'll see for yourself very soon," Nami said with a smile.

"There's not," past Sanji suddenly said, "From what the geezer told me that's the only place to enter."

Past Usopp looked over at him. "Well, how come?"

"Cause it's really dangerous?" he answered as if it was obvious.

"Couldn't you have been a little more specific about it?" Robin asked in amusement.

"That was all I knew! The old geezer never talked about his past," Sanji told her as his past self and Usopp began arguing about it.

"See, the reason is…" memory Nami began, but Luffy interrupted, "I got an idea! Why don't we sail right into it?!"

"And risk the Calm Belt?" Robin asked lightly.

Memory Nami looked deeply annoyed and snapped at him, "ARE YOU REALLY THAT CLUELESS?!"

"My way sounds a lot more fun!" he said brightly, smiling, "Plus it'd be a whole lot better to dive right into it right?"

Her past self looked angry and Nami knew that she wanted to tell him what she _really_ thought of his plan, but she put her hand to her head as if she had a headache and said, "Talking to you drives me completely insane!"

"Get used to it," present-day Nami sighed, wishing that she could get through to that rubber-brained idiot more often. "He does it on a daily basis after all."

"First off," Luffy said, sounding more serious, "We have to stop by an island! We need to pick up some meat! Need meat!"

Giving him an annoyed look, she pointed to a small island on the map and explained, "There's a famous city on this island. Known as Lougetown."

Robin blinked in surprise. That town is famous for…

"Lougetown?" Luffy repeated mildly, "Why's it famous? They got delicious meat?"

"I'm pretty sure I've heard of it before," past Zoro said as he looked up at the sky. "It's the city of the beginning… and the end."

"Beginning and… end?" repeated Brook in surprise. What did Zoro-san mean? Just what was so special there?

Luffy looked confused and Nami explained, "It's the town where the old King of the Pirates, Gold Roger, was both born and killed."

"Really?!" Chopper said in awe. "The Pirate King was raised and executed?"

"Yes," Robin explained, "Thinking they would make an example of him to prevent others from becoming pirates, the World Government had his execution in Loguetown. But as he was about to die, Roger yelled out his famous last words about the One Piece. What was thought would be a warning to all and extinguish the hopes of all pirates, had failed. The last words of Roger ignited and began 'The Great Age of Pirates'."

"He must've been something else to see," Usopp said in reverence. "To have been able to do all that… and it was seconds before he died too!"

"Amazing!" agreed Chopper, thinking about it all.

The past versions were all looking at the make with new interest as Luffy asked in a hushed tone, "That's where the King of the Pirates died?"

She looked at him with a small smile. "Well?"

"Yeah, let's do it," Luffy said seriously, "This was the man who had the One Piece. Everything the world has to offer… I need to see where he was born and executed."

"And he drove us all nuts, asking if we were there yet all the way till we got there," Zoro said with a smile.

"It was relief to get there and him off our backs," Sanji agreed, remembering all the times he wanted to throw him over the side just to get some peace and quiet. But suddenly he shared a glance with Zoro and they both remembered just what happened that day… what were they going to say when they saw that they almost let Luffy get executed that day? On their watch?

He sighed, not looking forward to this… and the next thing he knew was that they were standing in a large town in what looked like the main square—though it was wide-open it was filled with people.

"This is…?" Usopp said, looking around at the tall, stone buildings and the perfectly paved streets.

"Lougetown," Nami said, with a nod. "It was one of our final stops before we went to the Grand Line."

"So this is where it all began?" Franky said eagerly just as someone in the crowd around them yelled that someone was up on the executions platform. When they looked up, they could see a tall metal structure—several stories high—and starting to rust from the years of being exposed to the elements. Standing at the top, with his eyes shielded so that he could see everything, was Luffy.

"What's he doing up there?" Nami sighed.

"I'm guessing that's where Roger died," Robin said, greatly interested. This was a historical monument… there has been a reason why Roger was the last pirate to meet his end here.

"And of course Luffy wanted to see it all up close," Franky said reasonably. "Makes sense."

"Yeah, too bad that it got us all into a lot of trouble," Zoro said, a sense of shame in the pit of his stomach at what almost happened here.

Just behind them someone screamed, "Hey, you up there!"

Jumping a little, they turned back in time to see that a police officer—dressed in attire very similar to Genzo had been, was there with a loudspeaker. "Get down from there, immediately!

"But why!?" Luffy shouted back, like a child who had been told that he had to go to bed and didn't understand why he couldn't stay up later.

"You are standing on an execution platform that belongs to the World Government!" the officer yelled. "Now, get down from there right now!"

"What's the problem?" Franky asked irritably, his good mood disappearing almost at once. "As far as they're concerned, the World Government owns everything. They can force people to do whatever they want just for saying something belongs to them."

"Fine! I'll come down!" Luffy yelled down agreeably. "But first you have to say the magic word and smile too!"

The Straw Hats laughed at that. It was just so childish, but seeing the furious look on the man's face only made it seem funny.

"I'm not playing, I will arrest you if you don't come down!" the officer yelled, and he truly sounded annoyed. But before he could make good on his threat, someone came out from the crowd with a colossal iron mace over her shoulder before she hit the man so hard that he was out as soon as he hit the ground.

"Nice shot," Franky said as he looked to see who it was.

"Yeah, but she just made things worse here," Nami said nervously, "If Luffy had just got down when he was told, we could've avoided any trouble."

"Oh, he wasn't the one who started it," Zoro sighed, thinking back… "But he was the cause of it all."

"Huh?" Brook asked, and you could almost see the question marks over his head.

"HOLY…?!" Sanji yelled as he turned his attention to the woman. She was a truly beautiful woman that was slim, well-endowed, with dark-green eyes before is brown, and full ruby-red lips… but the most noticeable thing about her was her silky-looking skin that looked so soft…

"SHE'S GORGEOUS!" Sanji screamed out, already in love. "I remember seeing her… oh, I think I'm gonna…"

But what he was going to say, he never finished because the woman spoke. "Now's not the time for such trifles," she said in a sweet voice that seemed strangely familiar. Robin and Zoro especially felt as if they heard that voice somewhere before but were having a hard time trying to remember where.

The woman was looking up to Luffy and cooed out, "Long time no see, Luffy. I've been looking for you."

"WHAT?!" gasped Sanji in horror, "You mean Luffy knew such a goddess and he never introduced her to me?!"

"Yohohoho, she's must have some beautiful panties," Brook said dreamily as Usopp began drooling over seeing her.

"But I don't remember seeing her before," Chopper said, folding his arms and trying to think back to all the memories they had seen up till now. No, he honestly couldn't remember seeing her before… but at the same time she seemed so familiar…

Apparently Luffy didn't recognize her as well as he looked down with a confused look on his face. When she noticed this, the woman sighed. "Now that's just rude," she said, "You mean to tell me that you, of all people, this face?"

"Again, who is she?" Zoro said, sure that he heard that voice somewhere before. However, around them, the people were all staring at her much like how Sanji was drooling over her. Men and women alike were all claiming how beautiful she was.

"Forgot? I'm pretty sure we haven't even met," Luffy said in confusion. "Who are you?"

"I'll never forget you. You were the first man who ever truly strike me," the woman said fondly.

"WHAT?!" Sanji screamed, furious that his captain would have ever hurt such a beautiful person. "YOU BASTARD! AFTER WE GET YOU BACK I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!"

"What's she talking about?" Chopper said, tilting his head, completely lost just as the other people around them scowled up at Luffy, outraged that he had done something to this girl.

"What?! I never hit you!" Luffy yelled incredulity, looking a little lost as to why everyone was glaring at him.

"When you struck me with your powerful fist…" she answered, her hand over her stomach, "it felt good."

The whole crew sweatdropped at those words.

"Say what?" Zoro asked, now sure that he heard wrong. Luffy looked like how he felt and his eyes were darting around, as if hoping for a way to escape.

"She's nuts…" Usopp said, "Not saying that I wouldn't want to meet her, but still…?"

"Listen up boys, who is the most beautiful person on these seas?" the woman suddenly asked the crowd.

"That would be you!" everyone in the crowd yelled as they got down on their knees and held their arms out to her.

But the Straw Hats recognized that line at once. "No way…" Franky said shaking his head, "Impossible!"

"That's… Alvida?" Nami gasped.

"What?!" Usopp yelled in disbelief, "You mean that ugly, fat pirate that was keeping Coby hostage and Luffy took care with one punch? That Alvida?!"

"Who else could she be?!" Nami yelled at him.

"Well, that answers some questions, but leaves many more," Robin said, looking in surprise at Alvida's beautiful form.

"Are we sure…?" Zoro asked hesitantly, "Cause, I really don't think that's her."

"That's correct," Alvida said with a smirk, holding out her arm. "I am quite breathtaking aren't I? There isn't a man alive that won't crumble before my beauty. But I prefer _strong_ men… like you."

"I'm strong!" Sanji gasped, as if hoping she could hear him.

"Compared to what?" Zoro asked him curiously and Sanji threw a kick at his face.

"But seriously, what happened to her?" Usopp asked as Luffy was now looking seriously close to running away. "I mean… WOW!"

"Either she lost a lot of weight in a short time, or she could've eaten a Devil's Fruit," Robin offered, "After all, there are some fruits that can change the user's appearance… though how she came across one, I can't say. Had to be some time after Luffy defeated her."

"Ok, that explains that, but what does she want?" Usopp asked, folding his arms as he thought it all over. "You think that she's here for revenge for Luffy beating her? And what kind of fruit would make her like this?"

But his question was answered as Alvida cooed out, "I'm gonna make you all mine, Luffy. Just wait."

"WWWWWWWWHHHHHHHHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAAAATTTTTTTTTTTTTTT TTT?!" Sanji screamed out so loudly that it felt as if he would burst their eardrums. "HOW THE HELL DOES THIS MAKE SENSE? LUFFY HITS HER AND SHE'S IN LOVE WITH HIM?! I'M GOING TO KILL YOU FOR THIS LUFFY!"

"Would you shut up?" Zoro snapped at him as Luffy shouted out, now sounding completely sicken at the thought, "Gross! No way! Just who the heck are you!?"

"Luffy, you shut up!" Sanji yelled, aching to kick Luffy from her to next week. How could he not be overjoyed here? A goddess of a woman was eyeing him but he couldn't care less? Just what the hell was wrong with him?

"You still haven't figured it out!?" Alvida exclaimed in annoyance, losing her patience.

"I have to agree with Sanji here," Usopp said, in a deadpanned voice. "I mean… how is it that she wants Luffy after what he did to her?"

"Oh, I doubt that it's actual love," Robin chuckled, "Or even a school-girl crush short of thing. I think that since Luffy was the first man to defeat her, she became infatuated with him… but I believe that it's more of an _admiring_ love than anything else."

"So…?" Sanji said, perking up. "If she sees someone stronger she'll love them?"

"Maybe?" Robin offered and Sanji's hearts were back in his eyes, "So maybe there's hope!"

"I don't think that it would work out with you and her, Sanji," Nami said as several officers came running to the square with their weapons and telling Alvida to put her mace down and come with them.

"I placing you under arrest for assaulting a police captain!" another officer yelled before he turned up to Luffy and shouted out, "As for you up there! Get off that platform!"

"Hold on… _who_ did you say you were arresting?" Alvida asked, as if she just wanted to make sure she heard right.

"We… we're arresting you!" the officer stuttered, taken in by Alvida's beauty as she batted her eyelashes at him.

"Are you really going to arrest me?" Alvida asked sweetly, smiling as hearts now appeared in the officer's eyes and Sanji had turned to stone as he stared at her.

"SANJI!" Chopper yelled as he ran to him and tried to see what he could do.

"Pathetic," Zoro said unconcerned as the officers were all saying that they couldn't arrest her because she's too beautiful.

"I don't give a damn!" another yelled, though he was now looking close to proclaiming undying love as well, "Arrest her!"

But before they could act, a large cannonball came flying from behind them and it hit the fountain so that it ended up blowing it apart in large chucks. "LOOK OUT!" Brook couldn't stop himself from shouting as a large part of the fountain flew at Alvida, but it was too late. However, as it hit, it slide right off her as if it had been a giant bar of soap and went flying off near Luffy's direction but moved in time.

"Ah man, that's weird!" Luffy exclaimed loudly as everyone stared at her.

"How'd she do that?!" Chopper cried in amazement.

"It just slid off her skin!" Nami whispered, "Just what kind of fruit did she eat?"

"That little stunt was dangerous you know?" Alvida asked, sounding just a little irritated as she turned her attention to a group of people who had come from the direction of the cannonball—each of them wearing a dark cloak to cover themselves.

"I'm flashily sorry," the one out front said softly. "But that smooth skin of yours is unharmed of course? So there's no need to worry fairest Alvida."

"Smooth?" Nami repeated softly, "Wait…" she suddenly recognized the voice from under the hood. "Don't tell me that…?"

"He's back alright," Zoro said angrily, wishing that he could have another go at that clown bastard.

"Alvida?" Luffy repeated to himself, as he finally made the connection… or maybe not. "I don't see Alvida."

"Don't be so dense you nimwit!" Alvida yelled angrily, "I'M ALVIDA!"

"You sure?" Luffy asked, "'Cause I don't think you're her."

"To be fair," Usopp pointed out, "No one can blame him for not guessing it. I mean…" he remembered back to seeing Alvida on that cruise ship and shuddered, "I still don't see it."

Alvida smiled. "I guessed I really did change after eating the fruit called…" She removed her heart cloak to fully reveal her new body to them all, and get the whole picture to how much she had changed. "Smooth Smooth Fruit. No attack can hurt my skin because it slides right off."

"So that's it," Robin said, "And that is a very strong ability. Any attack would be useless on her…"

"Something to watch out for," Nami said softly.

"I don't think we need to worry," Franky said, "She doesn't seem like much of a fighter to me."

"Unfortunately, a lowly fruit could not improve on my already stunning good looks," Alvida sighed in disappointment as she touched her cheek. "One big change you may have noticed was that I lost my freckles."

"You mean… she hasn't noticed anything else disappearing?" Usopp asked as they all sweatdropped again. "Nothing at all?"

"I guess…?" Zoro answered doubtfully. He always knew that this lady wasn't right in the head and he just had proof. Maybe she and the cook would get along after all.

"Uh, sure, that must be it," Luffy whispered, though it was clear that he didn't believe a word he said as he continued to look around for a way to get away from her.

"After becoming a whole new person," Alvida went on. "I decided to join forces with someone who shared my goal of finding you." She then finally gestured to the cloaked men, and they all knew who they could possibly be.

"I had hoped that we'd seen the last of Buggy," Robin said tiredly.

"Nah, we're not that lucky," Zoro told her regrettably.

Here, Buggy laughed insanely as he and his crew threw off the cloaks and they could fully see the whole circus was back. "Now that I flashily made my entrance, time for the real star of the show!" he screamed out and pointed up at Luffy, "Monkey D. Luffy, ever since the day you sent me flying, I've been obsessed with exacting my revenge on you! That alone led to me finally finding my crew! My travels are an epic saga. I went to hell, found friendship, I even lost parts of my body! I call this tale 'Tiny Buggy's Great Adventure!' The first thing that happened was… WHY THE HELL AM I TELLING YOU A STORY?!"

Some of the Straw Hats fell over at those words.

"You've got to be kidding me," Franky said, his jaw falling open. "I didn't think this guy could get any dumber! But hey, maybe when Luffy-bro sent him flying, he lost whatever brain cells he had?"

"Wouldn't surprise me," Zoro said with a sigh. Now, if only Luffy had been paying attention and not let himself get caught here, he would've been able to deal with all this on his own.

"I think he should give up the pirate life and just open a traveling circus," Nami stated as Brook began to laugh. "But then again, he would scare little kids…"

Luffy stared blankly at Buggy. "Don't know. Now…" he folded his arms as he said, "What was your name again? Boggy? Buggie? Buhii? Baggy? AH! I know!" he said proudly, "It's buffoon!"

All the Straw Hats laughed at that.

"Well, I think it suits him better than Buggy," Usopp laughed. "Though Buggy sure does seem to bug Luffy here."

"Buffoon!?" Buggy screamed, enraged. "You got a lot of nerve you rubber bastard! And now Buggy the Clown is gonna make you pay for that!"

"Hey! That's Buggy the Clown!" one of the people yelled in fear. And at the mention of pirates, all the people there turned and began to try and run—wanting nothing more than to get away from the square as fast as they could. But the Buggy Pirates seemed to be prepared for this as they each pulled out guns and swords, making sure that they wouldn't move.

"You people flashily stay where you are!" Buggy proclaimed to them all. "I want every single one of you to see exactly how scary I can be!"

"Compared to what?" Chopper asked curiously as he tried to see over a tall guy who looked like a wild rocker with green hair and several piercings to get a look at the platform.

"Oh yeah!" Luffy yelled proudly, having just remembered Buggy's real name, "Buggy right?"

"You mean you just now remembered it!?" Buggy screamed.

"Well, that doesn't say much about you if your enemy doesn't remember you," Robin said in enjoyment as Brook suddenly yelled out, "Luffy-san! Watch out!"

Too late, with Luffy distracted, the man who fought Zoro on the unicycle, Cabaji, appeared behind him and slammed a large wooden board down on top of him to trap him so that he was trapped in the stocks that held his head and hands there.

"He didn't just get himself…?" Nami asked, slapping a hand over her face as Chopper remembered that he could walk through people and went running up to the foot of the tower to watch.

"Hey…?" Luffy questioned in surprise looking around up at Cabaji, "What gives?!"

"Long time no see, rubber freak," Cabaji greeted with a scolding tone as he sat on the stock and asked how Zoro was doing.

"Luffy's stuck here!" Chopper yelled back to them as they approached the platform as well.

"That idiot was cocky here," Sanji said darkly. "He's lucky that we all made it out of this mess alive."

He felt guilty at the thought of what happened. If that lightning bolt didn't come when it did then Luffy would've lost his head here.

"I think we were all a little cocky by this point," Zoro said, looking around for his and Sanji's past versions to come up.

"But of all the people that he could… Buggy?" Nami asked as she shook her head.

"Don't worry," Usopp said unconcerned, believing that Luffy would get out of this one easy. "He's been in worse spots."

"Good shot, Cabaji," Buggy praised as he began to laugh and call out to everyone, "To all of my followers! Hundreds of billions of them around the world…! We will now begin the most flashily public execution! You're trapped Monkey D. Luffy! You can't move so much as an inch!"

"Who is he talking to?" Chopper asked as the others all shook their heads.

"The followers in his dreams," Sanji stated dully.

"I see that getting beat hasn't shrunk Buggy's ego any," Robin stated calmly. Luffy attempted to pull his head out of the board, but he couldn't pull his head out of the hole—and it wasn't easy for him to do so while he was being held like this, he honestly couldn't move at all.

"Tell me Straw Hat!" Buggy yelled up at him as he laughed. "Fell honored?! You'll die in the same place as the King of the Pirates!"

"Doesn't he know that was where his old captain died?" Chopper asked quickly.

"I'm sure he does," Robin said softly, "But I guess that he thinks that it's worth it to kill Luffy. Even if it means that he's going to kill someone the same way that Roger was."

"Asshole," Sanji voiced what they all knew that Buggy was.

"But what's Luffy-san going to do here?!" Brook asked worriedly, "He's going to be killed here no matter what Buggy is."

"Zoro and Sanji both went to look for him," Nami answered, "As soon as we heard that Buggy was in the square, they went off to deal with him."

"Oh, well in that case…" Chopper said, sighing in relief as he looked around for the two to make their grand entrance.

However, no one but Brook and Robin seemed to noticed the uneasy expressions on Zoro and Sanji's faces. There was a little bit of humiliation in their faces as they kept their eyes on the platform—and they couldn't help but wonder just what happened here.

Again, Luffy was trying to move as a wind began to pick up and dark clouds were being blown over them so that the entire square was cast in shadows. And perhaps it was just the trace of electrical energy in the air that caused it, but there was also a strong sense that something big was going to happen here was building with each minute.

"A storm?" Franky asked, looking up at the sky, "It came out of nowhere!"

"I remember," Nami said, also have been surprised to see the dark clouds too. "But it was actually a good thing that it came when it did."

"What do you…?" Chopper began but Buggy was already speaking again like an announcer.

"Pirate Monkey D. Luffy of the Straw Hats, will be flashily executed for the crime of being stuck up and making me angry!" Buggy yelled as he lifted his arms, suddenly standing beside the trapped Luffy. At his words, all the pirates around them were screaming in celebration, shooting off guns and jumping as if a great show was about to take place. "Now live it up, flashily!" Buggy shouted as his men all cheered at that.

Luffy was looking down at them excitedly, "Oh boy! I've never seen an execution!"

"Doesn't he realize that it's his that they're talking about?" Usopp asked, he knew that Luffy was slow, but he thought that Luffy would've picked it up by now.

"We'll you're about to kid," Buggy informed him with a dark chuckle in his voice.

Luffy blinked at that and looked up as he slowly processed what he said. "WHAT?!" he screamed out in horror, "STOP JOKING!"

"It's no joke!" Buggy screamed as Luffy was now trying to desperately pull himself free and call for help.

"You need to start paying attention to what people say, Luffy," Nami hissed, once again, getting a Luffy-sized headache.

"ALRIGHT!" Buggy yelled to the crowd as Luffy continued to try pull his head free. "I HEREBY FLASHILY BEGIN THE FESTIVITIES OF THIS PUBLIC EXECUTION!"

"How can an execution count as festivities?" Nami asked hotly.

"There are some who deeply enjoy the thought of killing pirates," Robin offered.

"Well, those people have sick minds," Zoro said darkly, growing more impatient with every second. Luffy finally stopped struggling and was now lying there with a pout on his face.

"I'm so sorry. Really I am, please spare my life," he said in a droning voice, and it sounded as if Nami forced him to apologize for breaking something instead of pleading for his life. It couldn't have been any clearer to them that he didn't mean a word to what he said.

"WHY WOULD I SPARE YOUR LIFE?!" Buggy bellowed in frustration.

"This is what happens when you go against us," Cabaji commented, moving back down to the ground so that he could watch with the others.

Alvida sighed a little regretfully, "I guess this is it for the man I had my eye on."

"Well, it's not the end!" Chopper said firmly, but even he was starting to grow impatient for Zoro and Sanji to arrive and save Luffy.

Buggy held up a long sword and looked down at Luffy as he stated, "You've got quite a big audience here today, Straw Hat. You want to say a few words before you die?"

"Oh, I can think of a few words to say," Franky grinned evilly.

Luffy continued to sit there with a grumpy look on his face, even as Buggy stepped on his head. "Awww, cat got your tongue?" Buggy asked, still taunting him. "That's alright. Stay quiet or say a few words. It doesn't matter, you're still gonna die!"

Luffy lay there for a moment before he took a deep breath. Just as a great wind swept over them all he bellowed out at the top of his lungs, so that the words seemed to echo all around them, "LISTEN! I'M THE MAN WHO'LL BE KING OF THE PIRATES!"

There was stunned silence all around them as the crowd stared at him in disbelief—yet at the same time it was as if they could feel a strange energy coming from him—as if confirming his words.

Buggy however wasn't impressed as he grinned evilly. "We're finally getting to the best part of the show?" he asked him, looking truly pleased at what he was going to do, "Bye Bye now…"

Luffy had tried to pull his head out one last time, but it was clear that he was trapped here.

"What's taking you two so long to get here?!" Nami snapped at Zoro and Sanji.

"As soon as we heard those words, we got there," Zoro said to her annoyed, still hating the fact that they were sure to see how Luffy was truly saved here.

"Ah… Zoro-san? Sanji-san?" Brook asked quietly, not liking the angry looks in both men's eyes. "Is there something wrong?"

But then Zoro's voice echoed out behind them, "STOP THE EXECUTION!"

Jumping a little at his sudden voice, they turned to see them. There they were, Zoro and Sanji had finally shown up and were now standing at the edge of the crowd as they watched on.

"NOW!" they both screamed out at Buggy, clearly warning him that they weren't playing around here.

"Zoro, Sanji!" Luffy yelled in relief.

"Luffy you idiot," memory Zoro teased, his hand resting on the two new swords hanging at his hip. "Guess all that fooling around finally caught up with ya, huh?"

"You starting a sideshow?" past Sanji added, looking around at the Buggy Pirates. "Or is that how you look?"

"I'm sorry to learn that's how they always look," Sanji said, shaking his head in pity. Why else would anyone go around dressed like that anyway?

"Pretty sad," his past self finished off as he smoked, "Now… all we gotta do is drive these goons away."

'_Get on with it,' _Zoro thought angrily. It was true… Luffy wasn't the only one who had grown cocky here. Their friend was up on the chopping block and there they were making wisecracks.

"Alright Zoro! Sanji!" cheered out Chopper excitedly as the citizens all screamed Zoro's name in terror and fled—thankfully the Buggy Pirates turned their full attention away from them and onto the two men.

"HEY GUYS!" Luffy screamed again happily.

"You made it here, Zoro!" Buggy yelled cockily. "But you're just a little bit too late!" He raised his sword over his head, ready to cut Luffy's head off and that got their attention as they rushed in to try and take down the platform before that sword fell.

Of course, that was difficult to do since the pirates were now standing in their way—with Alvida now taking control and telling them what to do. Though the two members of the Monster Trio were easily able to plow through these weaklings, they were outnumbered and it was taking too long already.

"What's with you guys?!" Usopp yelled at them as he pointed to the platform. "Couldn't you move any faster than that!?"

"Hey, I don't see you anywhere!" Sanji snapped back.

"I was protecting Nami and the Merry from being blow apart!" Usopp yelled

Buggy laughed victoriously as he held his sword high as the sky continued to darken overhead—the storm was almost here. "Not even the great Zoro can stop me now! There's nothing you two can do! This is the end of your captain!"

Luffy's expression became terrified as he stared up at the blade as Buggy continued to laugh insanely.

"Man, how'd you two pull this off?" Franky asked them.

Sanji sighed as he blew out some smoke and confessed, "We didn't."

They looked at the two of them, seeing the shame in both men's eyes.

"What are you talking about?" Usopp cried, waving his arms around. "Of course you saved him! Luffy clearly still has his head!"

"Yes… but we weren't what saved him," Zoro said as he looked up in anger at Buggy.

"But then… who did?" Brook asked as the past versions of Zoro and Sanji were now fighting tooth and nail to reach the platform in time. They were quickly becoming more frantic and scared as they tried to force their way through.

"BASTARD!" memory Sanji screamed at Buggy as the thunder roared around them. As the Straw Hats all watched the two fight to get closer, Luffy's voice from above them sounded out: "Zoro! Sanji! Usopp! Nami!"

They looked up to see Luffy looking up—everyone in the square was now staring up as the fear completely left Luffy's face.

Instead… he was smiling…

Each of the Straw Hats felt as if they had frozen in place as they stared at him. It wasn't a forced or painful smile… but serene… as if he was truly happy. This lingering smile… Luffy truly believed he was going to die here… but he wasn't upset about it…

He looked like…?

Robin's eyes widened the instant she saw it. "He smiled…?" she gasped as Saul own smiling face, just seconds before he died, came to her mind.

"Sorry," Luffy went on, and he truly did sound like he meant it this time—but this time he was apologizing to his crew, not Buggy. "But… I'm dead," he informed them all. And he kept smiling even as Buggy brought his sword down on his neck.

"Idiot!" screamed memory Zoro as he stared up in horror.

"Don't say that!" Sanji yelled, now desperately kicking five or six pirates out of his way to get to them. But as the blade fell, it sparkled with electricity from the air and with a great explosion from above them a single bolt of lightning came crashing from the dark clouds and struck the tower.

"WHAT THE HELL?!" screamed Usopp, jumping back as the entire tower burst into blue flames and the skies opened up to the rain.

In a matter of seconds, it was pouring—but the platform continued to burn… slowly bending and twisting around as it broke and landed with a crash sideways. The sound of when it hit the ground echoed throughout the square.

No one said a word… on one even moved as they watched. Past and present versions were all staring with their mouths open in shock at the twisted heap of metal and burnt wood.

"What… the hell… just happened?" Franky croaked out, not believing what he saw.

"Lightning struck the platform just before Luffy was beheaded," Robin whispered in astonishment as they all looked up in time to see something fluttering down to the ground. The straw hat…

Just at that moment, Luffy had pulled himself out of the debris, his head still on and his body looking only slightly singed and dirty. Buggy wasn't so lucky… he was lying on the ground and was badly burnt and out cold. Like a puppy finding its owner, the hat dropped at his feet and Luffy picked it up to put it back on. As soon as he did he started to laugh—a laugh that cut through the silence—"Hey, I'm still alive! That's nice!"

With a strange gagging sound Brook spoke up and said, "How… why…?"

Nami glanced up at the skies and whispered, "I think… I think Buggy's sword… acted like a lightning rod or something… that's the only thing that I can clearly come up with. But even if that's what happened…?" she trailed off, just not knowing what to say to this.

"That… was… AMAZING!" Chopper screamed, his eyes like stars. "LIGHTNING STRUCK THE TOWER! IT SAVED LUFFY!"

"I guess we owe Mother Nature one," Zoro said calmly. Though he was still taken aback after seeing that for a second time…

"Not only did it deal with Buggy, but Luffy's made of rubber," Robin said, shaking her head, a smile back on her face, "He's lightningproof. It was almost as if fate had decided that Luffy should live."

The people in the memory hadn't recovered as quickly as they had and were all staring in stunned disbelief at what they just saw. Sanji's own mouth had was open so that his cigarette fell out… but Zoro's face didn't react at all, but there was a strange contemplation expression there as he looked at Luffy coming towards them, talking about how lucky an escape that was.

"Lucky? That couldn't have just been luck!" Brook said, now slapping himself awake. "It was as if that was the work of some god!"

"You think that he would be a little more shook up by that," Nami said, shaking her head with a little hysterical laughter.

"That was divine intervention!" past Sanji suddenly declared.

"Stop talking nonsense," past Zoro said at once, the first one to really recover. Though still shaken up by what just happened, he grasped the seriousness of the situation as he said loudly, looking around them, "We gotta get out of this town. Our troubles are not over."

"Wait, you're right!" Franky said, remembering that as well. "You guys gotta get back to the ship before something else happens! I think wishing for two miracles in one day is pushing it!"

It looked like he was right—because at that moment—a small army of Marines came charging out from all sides. It was clear that they had the entire place surrounded from the moment that the pirates began fighting each other and were now trying to round them all up. Luffy was looking ready for a fight but Zoro grabbed him and reminded him that they had to run now. That if they didn't get back to the Merry now, they weren't going to leave at all. So, with everyone's attentions on each other, the three turned and went running down the street in the direction of the docks.

The Straw Hats were all right behind them; but each one of them was thinking about what they had just seen. "Why…?" Brook suddenly asked, "Why would Luffy-san smile like that? He looked death right in the face and showed no fear! Did he know that he'd be saved?"

"No," Zoro said firmly. He had no idea to how it happened—but even if it was through luck or divine intervention, all that matter was that Luffy did survive it. "I'm sure that he truly thought that he was about to die. He just braced himself for it after he prepared himself."

"It gave me the creeps," Usopp confessed, suddenly feeling cold. "Smiling like that just before you're about to get your head cut off…?"

Robin didn't say anything as she ran with them, but her mind was racing. She had heard the stories… about how Gol D. Roger had also smiled just as he told the world about the One Piece and was then killed. Was this all a sign? It couldn't just be a coincidence could it? And then there was Saul… he too smiled just as his death came. Just like Luffy did… without a trace of fear or regret… just what is the Will of D? And why did all those D initials smile at their point of death?

As they ran through the empty streets, the rain was now coming down harder than ever before. Past Zoro yelled in frustration, "What the hell is up with all this rain?"

"Unfortunately, most of us can't control the weather," Robin said cheerfully, sharing a smile at Nami. "It will rain when it wants to, and it will continue to rain until it stops."

"Nami was right about this storm," memory Sanji said loudly, trying to shield his eyes from the water with his arm so that he could see where they were going. "If we don't get back to the ship and set sail soon, then we'll be stuck here for good!"

"Yes," present-day Nami said, "But the tail wind we got from this storm also helped in our escape and got us to the Grand Line in a much shorter time. As well as all the rain kept our ship from being destroyed from the Buggy Pirates and the Marines!"

"Truly a blessing in disguise," Brook said as he ran happily along with them as Luffy shouted for them to just keep running. After all, Luffy was saved by that freak lightning bolt and then all this? It was as if heaven itself had decided to help the Straw Hats escape from here.

On they ran, even when the Marines were right behind them, they kept going—not bothering to stop and fight. With every step they seemed to take however, the rain seemed to become thicker and fall harder so that it was getting hard to see anything in front of them. But eventually, they spotted someone standing in their way… a young woman with short navy-blue hair and a sword in her hands.

"Who's that?" Franky asked.

"Some wannabe swordsman," Zoro said unconcerned.

"I didn't know you were Zoro… and a pirate as well. You lied!" the woman said, her head down. But then she looked up and glared at Zoro and said loudly, "You're just another liar!"

"What's her problem?" Usopp asked as both Sanji's began yelling at Zoro.

"It's not my fault she can't see anything in front of her, even with glasses," present-day Zoro snapped at him. "I would've thought it was obvious who I was. She's a sword geek and watched me picking out a couple. She never once asked my name and I never said otherwise."

His past self seemed to agree as he told her irritably, "You never asked what my name was, did you? So I never _lied_ did I?"

"It's all in a point of view," Franky said, "Technically, you can't say that it was a lie if you never claimed to be someone else."

The woman got angry at him and declared that she wasn't going to let him leave town with his sword, in the end, Zoro decided to stay behind and fight.

"Wado?" Chopper said in confusion.

"This," Zoro said showing him the white sword. "It's a very rare and legendary sword. I've been training with it since I was a child. But she thought that she could take it from me without any effort. Well, is she wants it so badly she had to earn it."

He looked up in time to see Tashigi charge ahead in anger and pull out her blade, but his past self was more than able to hold her back. His eyes held a thoughtful expression as past Sanji yelled that he shouldn't fight a girl. That got Tashigi even angrier than before and told him off for that, as memory Zoro told them to go on ahead.

Luffy nodded, deciding to leave it all to him as he and Sanji left—with Sanji threatening to kick his ass if he hurt her.

"You didn't hurt her did you?" Sanji demanded.

"Just her pride," Zoro said in annoyance, holding up Wado and looked at it thoughtfully. He had been carrying around Kuina's dream with him all this time… as if he would just hand something like this over to some amateur. She may have been a decent swordsman here in the East Blue but she's no master. "Believe me, the fight didn't last long at all."

In his opinion, it was good for her… from what he overheard the Marines behind them say, she never lost before. He knew that feeling better than anything. Like he learned from Mihawk, this would be a hard lesson in humility… he honestly didn't care if he was fighting a man or a woman… if they were standing in his way, he would take them out.

As Luffy and Sanji ran through the raging storm that suddenly appeared in Loguetown, Luffy met up with the another Marine… and this time it turned out to be none other than Smoker.

"Smoker!" cried out Nami worriedly. This was bad, Luffy had so much trouble fighting Logia's in these days.

"Who?" Brook asked her.

"Captain Smoker," Robin answered him, as Luffy told past Sanji to keep going. "Or rather it's now Vice-Admiral Smoker. He was had Alabasta I believe…"

"Right… he was stuck with us inside that cage as you were taunting us," Zoro said.

"That was Crocodile who did all the taunting not me," she answered casually, though a slight feeling of guilt entered her stomach at the thought that they had once been on opposing sides.

"Wait, what are you talking about?" Franky asked. But the memory versions of Luffy and Smoker weren't waiting around as they began to fight. But here, no matter what Luffy threw at him, none of his attacks did any good.

"What is this guy?! He's made of smoke?!" Brook yelled in surprise.

"He ate the Smoke Smoke Fruit," Robin answered, remembering reading up on him as Luffy jumped around and tried a Gatling Gun on Smoker… however his attacks just ended up going right through him like smoke. "A logia type."

"What's wrong?" Smoker challenged, "Had enough already?"

Luffy slowly go back up and tried to attack, but nothing he did worked.

"And that is why Logia's are so annoying," Sanji said. Smoker trapped Luffy in a cloud of smoke and slammed him to the ground, his face in the concrete and his hand on his head.

"Damn, I forgot how stupid it is to fight them," Zoro said in annoyance.

"I told you!" Smoker yelled at him, "You gotta go through me to get to the Grand Line! You're not worth thirty million beri's! Huh, you're luck's run out."

"Wait, how'd he get out of this one?!" Usopp yelled as Chopper screamed out angrily, "OF COURSE HE'S WORTH THAT MUCH! DON'T YOU KNOW WHAT THEY HAD TO GO THROUGH TO GET THAT?!"

But as Smoker reached for his weapon, someone stepped out of the shadows and took hold of it to prevent him from moving.

"Who's that?" Brook asked, trying to make out the man's face. But it was difficult… not only was the rain obstructing their view, the man was wearing a long, dark-green cloak that hid him completely from their view.

"I wouldn't be so sure about that," the man said in a hoarse voice. Though his tone carried no trace of a threat, they could tell that he meant business… there was something in that voice that seemed to demand attention despite speaking so softly.

Robin gasped a little, recognizing that voice at once. "It's him…"

"It's you…" Smoker snarled almost exactly as Robin spoke.

"Hey, what's going on?!" demanded Luffy with a muffled voice, hard for him to speak with his face to the ground. "Who's that?!"

"Dragon…" Robin whispered.

"DRAGON?!" the rest of the crew cried as they stared at the man.

"YOU MEAN THAT'S…?!" Usopp began.

"LUFFY'S FATHER?!" finished Sanji in amazement.

"How nice," Smoker said to him, "Now the government can have your head!"

"I doubt that," Robin said softly, looking on with keen interesting, knowing that Smoker didn't stand a chance against him. Lightning flashed and, for a fraction of a second, she got a glimpse of the man's face. The red tribal tattoo and the dark eyes very much like his son's…

Dragon didn't speak for a moment, but then he went on in that same hoarse voice, "The world is still waiting for our answer."

"What?" Nami asked, moving forward to try and see more. But just then the whole area was surrounded with an eerie green light and a great wind came rushing out of nowhere… a wind that was so strong that it was as if they were in the middle of a maelstrom. They screamed, but soon they were sent flying back… falling backwards onto soft grass just as the memory faded around them and they were breathing in the clear, night air.

Gasping for air, Nami stared around—remembering that strong wind before… she remembered seeing it coming from the town and it had been so strong that it almost ended up blowing her off the ship. She didn't think much about it at the time because she had been so worry about leaving the boys behind. But now…

"So _he_ did that?" Nami whispered, shivering at the memory and rubbing her arms. "Dragon was the one who was behind all that?"

Once he had caught his breath, Sanji pulled out a new cigarette and lit it to calm his nerves. "Now that… was some serious power. It almost blew the whole city apart."

"Amazing!" cried Brook from where he laid with his face in the dirt. "Such strength I've never seen before! If I did not just see it all, I would have doubted my own eyes! Not that I have eyes to see with! Yohohoho!"

"That doesn't surprise me at all," Robin said softly. Even after meeting the man, she still couldn't get over how powerful he was. "He is the leader of the Revolutionaries and has full command of the organization. He's a powerful threat in his own right, and not only that, but he also has powerful officers who serve under him… the fact that he could deal with Smoker and everyone here doesn't surprise me."

No one was able to think of what to say, each one of them taken aback by the amount of power that they all just witnessed. Even those who couldn't perform Observation Haki felt dizzy at the show of strength that he must've possessed.

"Luffy's… Luffy's grandpa did say that Dragon saw you guys off at Lougetown," Chopper stuttered a little as he regained control. "So… is he a good guy?"

"Hard to say when it comes to Dragon," Robin answered thoughtfully. "I believe that he does what he believes to be right. But he did think to help you all out…"

"Yeah, but why… why didn't he talk to Luffy here?" Nami asked as she shakily got back to her feet. "I mean, Luffy's his son right? You think that he would want to talk to him?"

Robin could only shrug. In truth, she wasn't sure what to think here. Dragon was a very complex man to understand, but he always seemed to hold high expectations when it came to Luffy. Although he has yet to introduce himself to him, and though she hadn't heard Dragon ever talk about him, he did seem to support his son's actions up till now.

And after all, he did just come to Loguetown to see Luffy off to the Grand Line and stopped Smoker from capturing him, showing that he cares somewhat for his son's well-being. And she knew that he must also be incredibly proud of all the trouble that Luffy has been causing for the World Government…

She wondered if the two would ever get to meet each other face-to-face?

"So what happened after the wind came?" Franky asked them.

Sanji puffed on the cigarette and explained, "That wind came out of nowhere and blew us all right to the docks. We were able to get on the Merry just in time." Brushing himself off, he also got back to his feet, "So, it looks like we owe Dragon one for that."

"I guess…" Nami said quietly, having mixed feelings for the man. She wasn't sure what to think anymore. And what did he mean by 'the world was still waiting for our answer'?

They didn't say anything else as they patiently waited for the next memory to appear, and it did in just a couple more minutes. They were standing on the Going Merry, but it was still raining hard and the storm raged around them. Fierce gales and heavy rains and battered the ship something awful as Nami was shouting out instructions. This looked like it was the same storm they were in just moments ago and realized that they must've just left Loguetown.

"Feels like she's gonna capsize!" Luffy yelled from the front, but instead of worried, he sounded excited at the thought that they might end up drowning.

"Of course he'd be happy about that!" Sanji yelled, but there was also a trace of anticipation in the air.

"Hey look! A light!" memory Nami suddenly screamed out and they looked up to see a bright light burning in the distance, point the way through the storm.

"Is that a lighthouse?" memory Usopp screamed over the noise of the storm as he hung on to the mast to keep himself from slipping.

"Is this where you enter the Grand Line?!" Brook asked, his non-existing heart would've been beating loudly at this.

"No," present-day Nami explained and let her past self tell them what's going on. That this was just a guide post—lighting the way to the Grand Line entrance ahead.

"The Grand Line is just out ahead," Luffy repeated in awe, his eyes bright as he grinned at the lighthouse. Past Nami smiled just as brightly as she looked to him, and she was as excited as he was here.

"Do we have to go there in the middle of a freaking hurricane like this?" Usopp asked worriedly.

"Can't think of a better time," Zoro stated with a light laugh as his past self smirked and Sanji grinned wildly, giving them a thumbs-up. Luffy and Nami were grinning at each other as Luffy held onto his hat to keep it from being blown off.

"I think you're outnumbered here, Usopp-san, Yohohoho!" Brook laughed.

Past Sanji then yelled out, "Ok then, I think we should say something to mark the occasion."

"Good idea!" Usopp exclaimed, finally able to pull himself off the mast at the suggestion as Luffy yelled in agreement to that idea.

"What did you have in mind?!" Franky yelled, a little disoriented from the storm and having a little trouble to staying on his feet as past Sanji rolled out a large barrel on the upper deck and the five crewmates stepped around it.

Each one had an excited gleam in their eye—because they all knew that this was the first time of them fulfilling their dreams. They smiled at the barrel, as if each one was thinking the same thing as the others. Sanji stepped up first and put his foot on the top of the barrel. "I'm going to the Grand Line to find All Blue!"

Following suit, Luffy also put his foot up and proclaimed that he was going to become the King of the Pirates. One by one, they all put a foot up and told each other their dreams… the reason they set out to sea with each other in the first place was for these reasons. Zoro and Nami both proclaimed their reasons for being here and looked to Usopp who stood there thinking… as if he didn't know what to say.

"Usopp?" began Chopper, but then he quickly put his foot up and said, "I guess I'm going… to be a brave warrior of the sea!"

And then the Straw Hats all watched. Though the five of them held their feet there for only a few seconds, it felt so much longer… they looked at the barrel that held their goals and hopes, each one smiling through the rain. At this moment, there was no fear or hesitation in any of them… there was no turning back for them even if they wanted to. They all knew what they wanted and it was here that they decided that they were going to go to the ends of the world if that's what it took to get it… and no matter what happened, they were going to do it together.

"And now…" Luffy yelled as they all raised their legs high, and brought them down to smash the barrel, "TO THE GRAND LINE!"

"Yeah!" everyone, even the present-day Straw Hats shouted, with the little boat continuing on through the rough storm, following the light until the memory closed away and the storm was gone once again.

"Oh," Franky said, sniffling where he stood. "That was so… touching! So it was here that it all truly started huh? That was the moment that you all decided to go to hell and back again! I wish that was me in there!"

"I wish I was there with you guys too!" Chopper cried out, wishing more than ever that he had joined up with them sooner.

"Truly a special ceremony to mark the first step in your journey!" proclaimed Brook, "It makes me wish that we did the same thing when I came to the Grand Line all those years ago with my first crew!"

"I wonder," Zoro said thoughtfully. While he knew that they all learned a lot since that night, but… he wondered that if there were still parts of him that hadn't changed at all. For example, Nami was still the scheming thief, Usopp was still a liar, Luffy was still an idiot, and the cook…? Well, he was still a jackass. In so many ways they were still the same people who made that vow… but in other ways, they're totally different. He glanced up to the sky… he wondered just how much he had changed since then…?

"You looked a little unsure of your own dream there, Usopp-san?" Brook suddenly asked and Usopp jumped a little in surprise at that.

"Oh, ah… well about that," he said with a high laugh as he rubbed the back of his head, "I always knew what I _wanted_ to become… I just… never really knew how to put it into words. I wanted to be a pirate and be brave like my father so that I could go out on amazing adventures and risk my life out here on the open seas, but I guess that I never really thought about what I really wanted to do till then. I mean," he looked to them all, "You all knew what you wanted for years…"

"Maybe," Nami told him smiling. "But… you're well on your way to becoming a brave warrior."

"Hey," he said confidently, "I've already become one!"

"Funny, I notice that you still run away from time to time," Zoro reminded him in a teasing voice.

"Who asked you?!" Usopp said firmly. "But I have another dream! I want to go to the island of giants! Elbaf! And one day I will!"

"You know, I hear that the Elbaf is out here in the New World somewhere," Robin informed him, "If we keep going, I'm sure that we'll reach it sooner or later."

Usopp's eyes suddenly shown and he grinned so widely that he didn't seem to be able to contain his anticipation.

"Well, let's hurry up and beat this thing already so we find Luffy and leave!" he cheered out and Chopper was jumping up and down, cheering at the thought of seeing giants and brave warriors as well.

They laughed together until the next memory came up…

They were out in the sea again with the water calm as glass and without a breeze in the air as Usopp was jumping around, happy as a clam. "They aren't following us!" he yelled joyfully, "See? Captain Usopp can even scare a Marine fleet away!"

"Perfect! Another triumph by our expect navigator!" Luffy called, dancing with Usopp.

"What happened?" Chopper asked as he looked around, feeling a little bit isolated in such calm weather.

"Sounds like we escaped from another Marine attack," Zoro said, trying to think back to which time it could've been.

"Well, done Nami!" memory Sanji cried out lovingly, "Incredible you detected that wind before it hit!"

"Wind?" present-day Nami repeated to herself softly, suddenly having a bad feeling to what this memory was.

Her past self blushed a little as she said, "Well, all I did was pay attention to my gut instinct."

"Only you could be so humble in your perfection," he swooned.

"Now I know something's off," Zoro said, rolling his eye. Nami was a lot of things, but humble wasn't one of them.

"Shall we continue on to Warship Island?" Luffy asked them all.

"Warship Island?!" the four of them repeated, suddenly realizing just where they were. Their thoughts were confirmed as a little girl popped up from behind Luffy. She was in a long mustard yellow dress, pointy hat, with brown eyes, blonde hair, and fair skin.

"You mean you'll still take me?!" she cried out happily to him.

"Apis?!" Usopp said in amazement.

"I didn't think we'd see her again," Nami smiled.

"Who's she?" Chopper asked them.

"She's the little girl we met just before we entered the Grand Line!" Usopp explained happily. "We found her stranding in the ocean and pulled her in before we took her back to her home.

"Apis was really the one who detected that wind," Nami said and when they all looked confused, she explained, "She ate the Whisper Whisper Fruit, so she can read the mind of any animal. We were being chased by Marines and were having trouble getting away—that was when she told me that a wind was coming. Later, she told me that it was the seabirds who told her."

"That sounds like a very interesting ability," Robin said, sharing a smile with Chopper.

"A lot of animals have a lot of cool things to say," he answered happily as Luffy and past Usopp both assured Apis that they would take her home. But the only person who didn't seem happy was past Zoro. He was looking at the flat sails with a grim expression and past Nami looked at him to ask if something was wrong.

"Oh, something was wrong here," present-day Nami sighed, remembering just where they were.

"Yeah," memory Zoro admitted slowly, "I guess I hoped that I was dreaming."

"About what?" she asked, wondering just what it was that they should be worrying about. He merely looked back and told her that they suddenly stopped moving. She blinked and looked around, realizing that he was right—there was no longer any wind. Just then, her eyes widen in horror and she let out a terrified at the top of her lungs which got everyone's attention.

"What's wrong, sis?" Franky complained, a tiny hand coming out of his massive one so that it could dig out the ear that she screamed in.

"Nami? What's wrong?" asked Luffy, looking up to her. She was holding onto the railing and looked ready to faint.

"NO!" she screamed, panic all over her face, "WE'RE SCREWED! WE'VE ENTERED THE CALM BELT!"

"THE CALM BELT?!" repeated Brook in horror, knowing all the stories about that place. He gulped as he remembered how Captain Yorki and the rest of the crew who had been forced to leave the Grand Line before them because of that terrible disease. He prayed with all his non-existing heart that they had made it through alive…

"That was a nightmare," Nami said, shaking her head. "When we escaped from the Marines, we went too far south and were trapped in the Calm Belt!"

The Clam Belt?" past Usopp asked, getting the name wrong, as Luffy asked what that was.

"CALM BELT!" memory Nami screamed at him, "A PART OF THE SEA WHERE NOTHING MOVES A MUSCLE!"

"So there are mussels _and_ clams?" Luffy asked eagerly and present-day Nami rolled her eyes. She firmly believed that Usopp was a bad influence on Luffy.

"NO!" she screamed. And suddenly the sea beneath them shook slightly, a deep rumbling coming from below the ocean wave. Something was down there…

"What's that? An earthquake?" Luffy asked.

"Nice trick since we're at sea," past Zoro said. But Nami ignore them all and barked at them all to hurry and pull the sails in and break out the paddles to get back on course.

"Don't panic," past Zoro said, "And besides, this is a sailboat why do we need to paddle?"

"You won't be asking questions for much longer," Robin said knowingly. Though she had never been in the Calm Belt before, she heard more than her fair share of stories and rumors about this place. And everything she heard about it all said that you aren't here alone for long.

Usopp agreed with Zoro and wanted to know why they would want to turn back and head back to where the Marines had been chasing them. Past Nami lost her temper and told them to just shut up and do what she said. When they still hesitated, she finally explained. Pulling out her chart, she showed them all, "Now look! The Grand Line is sandwiched in the middle of these two green areas here, you understand?" Without waiting for an answer she went on, "These two areas, just as they're labeled, are what're called the Calm Belt! That's where we are! No one knows why, but inside the Calm Belt there's no wind and no current! It's like a void where everything's stagnate! Giving that sailboats move by catching wind, this is more than dangerous region, it can be fatal! GET IT?!"

"Nope," Luffy said bluntly, "But it sounds like we're in big trouble."

"Good," she said irritably, "You retained more than I thought you would!"

"I'm surprised that he got even that much," Robin teased a little.

"So this is what that geezer meant when he said it was dangerous," past Sanji said, thinking it over.

"Well that explains why we haven't felt a single gust of wind," memory Zoro agreed as Usopp started to ask about how they were planning on getting out of here if they couldn't move.

"Which is why we needed to shut up and start paddling," Nami said as she watched how naïve they all were here.

"Maybe the wind will start blowing again?" Luffy offered optimistically.

"Wind never blows in the Calm Belt!" past Nami yelled at him. "And that's not all! There's another very good reason why people call this place dangerous! It's infested with…"

But she never had a chance to finish explaining. The sea around them rose up and Nami screamed, "HERE THEY COME!"

All at once, they were up in the air, surrounded on all sides by Sea Kings. Dozens of them of every shape and color—but all of them gigantic… and they happened to be sitting on the nose of one of them.

Chopper, Usopp, and Brook screamed here; the sight of such behemoths sent waves of terror down their spines. Each and every one of them was so big they could've eaten them, ship and all with a single bite. "Why is everything in the Grand Line have to be so big?" Usopp whispered, breathing hard as he tried to get his heart to calm down. They were safe; they didn't have to worry about getting eaten here.

"They're as big as Surume!" Chopper cried out fearfully.

Past Nami was now clinging to the mast with Usopp as tears fell from her eyes. "The Calm Belt's also home to the Sea Kings!" she told them all, "It's their main place for breeding! They're the biggest reason why people can't cross the Calm Belt!"

"Otherwise there would be more people going in and out of the Grand Line," Brook said softly, his mind still on his old crew and wondering just what happened to them. He doubted that he would ever find out—and a part of him had a bad feeling to what must've happened—but he did his best not to dwell on that.

He focused only on watching Apis and the Straw Hats, all frozen in fright as the Sea Kings all surrounded them.

"Why aren't they attacking you?" Franky asked in surprise. He thought for sure that they would've swallowed them by now.

"Well, if they are giants to us, there is a good chance that they didn't even see them yet," Robin offered.

"Yeah, I think that was the only reason we weren't dead yet," Nami confessed as past Sanji hissed to the others on having any ideas to how to get out of this mess.

Memory Zoro had one. "Yes," he said, "Everybody don't move a muscle. We don't want to give them any reason to stick around and eat us. Once they're gone we'll paddle back got it?"

"Right now, that's all you can do," Franky said, unusually quiet too. It just seemed wrong to speak any louder than that at the moment, "Since you don't have a Coup de Burst to get you guys out of here."

Too bad not everyone thought that was a good idea…

"YOU CALL THAT A PLAN?!" Usopp screamed out.

"Idiot," present Sanji snapped as he slapped him upside the head. "What were you thinking? Did you have to shout like that?"

"I'm sorry," he said, thinking how stupid he had been here. He just had been holding his shock inside all that time and just couldn't hold it back anymore.

"Shut up," Nami hissed as she covered his mouth, but it was too late. An enormous Frog Sea-King with buck teeth, jumped towards them. It was so big that the Merry was about the size of one of it's teeth… for a horrible moment they thought that they were all going to be swallowed…

Suddenly Apis lost her footing and she was falling towards the open mouth, screaming as she went.

"APIS!" screamed Chopper in worry. But clinging to the side of the Merry, Luffy stretched out his arm to catch her and swung her high out of the way—freaking out at seeing his powers.

"YOUR ARM IS STRETCHING!" she screamed out in shock before asking, "LUFFY? DID YOU GET YOUR ABILITY FROM EATTING A DEVIL'S FRUIT?"

"Yeah, that's right!" he yelled back as she then yelled, "HEY! STRETCH YOUR ARM DOWN AGAIN!"

"What's she thinking?!" Brook cried out, wondering just what that little girl had in mind.

"Don't worry," Nami said smiling, "She may be small… but she's fearless and smart."

Luffy was looking surprised at the order, but he did as she said as they others screamed at him. But she swung around near the Sea King's nose and yanked a nose hair.

"Oh dear…" Robin said with a little giggle, knowing just what was about to happen.

"We're in for another wild ride!" Brook called excitedly.

"What the hell did she just do?!" memory Zoro yelled.

"Yanked a nose hair!" Luffy yelled back and the beast began to twitch and it's eyes watered—both past Usopp and Nami were screaming in fear as past Sanji bellowed out: "BRACE YOURSELVES I THINK THIS BEHEMOTH'S GONNA SNEEZE!"

Luffy had brought Apis back and Zoro caught her just in time. She grinned at him as Luffy stared at the hair, giving him the thumps up as Luffy yelled out, "GET READY WE'RE GOING FOR A RIDE!"

And like that they were sent flying through the air, skipping over the water like a stone, screaming the whole way. But Luffy was loving every moment of it. "Oh wow!" he yelled, looking around as they were sent flying, they six of them were hovering above the deck. "It feels like we're flying!"

Past Usopp was looking freaked out as he screamed, "IN CASE YOU HAVEN'T NOTICED, WE ARE FLYING!"

"Yohohoho! You all seem to be flying a lot!" Brook laughed joyfully as they soared over the Sea King's heads and landed with a loud splash. That was when it all faded around them.

"What happened?" Robin asked them all, wondering why it all ended there.

"We landed right back on course," Nami said in relief. "And that was our first encounter with what was waiting for us in the Grand Line. Thankfully, we got away from that without any trauma."

"Do you really think she's ok?" Usopp asked her. "I mean, she's still home protecting the Dragon's Nest isn't she? All by herself?"

"I'm sure she's just fine," Nami said firmly.

"Dragon's Nest?" Robin repeated in surprise.

"Right, might as well tell you guys the whole thing," Sanji said, and explained the whole story. They explained that after they escaped from the Calm Belts, they continued on their course to Warship Island to take Apis home. After they got there, they found out about her Devil Fruit ability and that she had befriended a dying Millennial Dragon. She wanted to return him to his homeland called the Dragon's Nest but they run into several problems.

By trying to protect the Dragon, who she named Grandpa Ryu, from the Marines Apis ended up captured by Commodore Nelson. The reason that they found her floating in the sea was because she escaped the Marine ship on the night of the storm and they continued to come after her. When Chopper asked why they wanted Grandpa Ryu, Nami told him that it was because the bones of the Millennial Dragons was used to make a powerful, and valuable, medicine called Dragonite.

"That's used to create the legendary elixir of eternal life is it not?" Robin asked in surprise and Chopper was looking amazed at that.

"Well, can't say for sure if that's true," Nami said, thinking it all over. "But because of that, they wanted to kill Grandpa Ryu for his bones."

"That's horrible!" Chopper yelled in outrage. While he was fascinated by the idea of such a medicine, he couldn't stand the thought of killing someone for it!

"Exactly why we wanted to help them," Nami said smiling. She explained how the commander had hired a mercenary named Eric, who had the powers of the Sickle Sickle Fruit and was capable of slicing through the air itself, creating razor-sharp vacuum blades like Zoro's flying blade attacks. In the end, the five of them helped Apis and Grandpa Ryu run away from the marines, taking care of her as they tried to find Lost Island.

"Odd name, why's it called Lost Island?" asked Brook curiously.

"Because it sank into the sea about a thousand years ago," Usopp said.

"Wait, what?!" Franky yelled incredulity, "Then how were you supposed to find it?!"

"That was the hard part," Sanji said.

And so in the end, after many struggles, they were able to find the Lost Island and were able to fulfill Ryu wish of being brought back to the nest. They had even offered Apis the chance to join the crew, but she decided that she wanted to stay and protect the island and the nest.

"You know she was almost like a full-blooded member of the crew," Zoro said, thinking it over.

"It would be nice to see her again," Nami laughed. "I'm looking forward to going back to the East Blue someday to see it."

The next memory finally appeared, and they were in the Merry's cabin with Usopp at the ship's head helm and the others were sitting at the table. Nami slammed the chart down in front of them. "Take a look," she said darkly. "I'm familiar with the rumors and these drawings confirm it for me! As unimaginable as it may seem the entrance to the Grand Line is a Mountain!"

"Yes!" Sanji yelled, giving a thumbs up. "This is when we get to Reverse Mountain!"

"Finally," Zoro said, now feeling a sense of excitement going through him at the idea.

"Mountain?" repeated Luffy in surprise.

"So what?" past Zoro asked, "Do we crash into it?"

"And what purpose would that serve other than killing us?" present Sanji asked him mockingly as his past self leaned over to see the map for himself.

"I didn't believe it but the map's clear," memory Nami said firmly, pointing to the little lines that crossed on the picture of the mountain. "The mountain seems to be riddled with small canals so we might have to go up and over it."

"Ah! Sounds like fun!" Luffy said, a glass hanging from his mouth.

"What are you talking about?" past Zoro asked sounding cynical, "Even if there are canals or whatever, a ship can't climb up a mountain."

Present Zoro smiled at that. Boy was he wrong.

"Well the map says otherwise!" past Nami snapped at him and, naturally, Sanji took her side and told him off.

"Yeah, but remember," past Zoro added coolly, "That map was stolen from Buggy the Clown. So can we trust it?"

"That is a very good point," Robin said, thinking of Buggy. But then again, if he was going to all that trouble to get it back when Nami stole it, then it must've been the real thing. The whole time that they talked, Usopp was yelling at them in the background, pulling at the rudder and complaining about it being stuck. "A little help over here'd be nice!" he yelled.

"Sanji, can you please give Usopp a hand?" past Nami asked in annoyance, "I can't think with all his shouting!"

"Right away, Nami!" swooned Sanji going over, but realizing the problem as he shoved against it.

"Ah, does this current seem unusually strong to anyone else?" past Usopp asked as Nami looked up at those words. The scene went on with Nami realizing that the current was the answer. That the canals did go up the mountain thanks to powerful currents of water from the four oceans being forced to the top of the mountain before they flowed back down into Grand Line.

"If we screw up and miss the entrance to the canal the Going Merry will be carried right into the Red Line's rockface and likely be destroyed!" she finished speaking firmly. "Ship and crew would sink to the bottom of the sea! Understand?"

"Boy that was rough," Usopp said, thinking back to trying to get up the canal just right. "It was a scare just getting there and it could've killed us."

"Yeah," Luffy said to Nami, his hand under his chin and said thoughtfully, "So basically it's a 'mystery mountain'."

Present Nami let out a laugh. He didn't understand a word she said. It was just amazing… Luffy can easily be amazed by the simplest of things, and can be confused so easily. Even when they try to explain it in a way that a five year old could understand, he just calls it a 'mystery thing'.

Her pas self sighed. "No, that's not my point at all!" she said in annoyance. "Anyway, since we're position on this current we shouldn't run into any problems getting to the summit of Reverse Mountain. The only thing that would hurt us now is if something went wrong with the rudder."

"Nami you're a genius!" Sanji swooned.

"And still are," current Sanji sight as he looked at her and she smiled proudly. But past Zoro still looked doubtful. "Call me skeptic," he said, "But ships do not climb up mountains!"

"You need to be a little more open minded Zoro-san," Brook said happily.

"Well I have heard stories," past Sanji said and Luffy asked if he was talking about the mountain which he shook his head. "No," he admitted, "But what I have heard was that more than half the people who try to make it to the Grand Line die before they even get there. Whatever we find, it's not gonna be easy."

Soon a terrible storm started off and they were running around the deck, listening to Nami's orders. They pulled in the sails just as they could see the Red Line appear in front of them through the mist.

"This is so great!" Chopper yelled eagerly, practically jumping up and down on the deck, wondering just what was going to happen next.

"HEY!" Luffy screamed from the mast, "I CAN SEE THE MYSTERY MOUNTAIN!"

The others all ran over to see what he was talking about. The Red Line was so tall that they couldn't even see the top of it. It was just like when they all reached the Red Line together… even the weather was identical to then. There were whirlpools and dark clouds above them and they were being pulled along the current. Luffy almost fell off the mast and shouted at them to hold the rudder steady and called for Nami to find the entrance.

Nami stared ahead as she finished putting on a pink raincoat and Usopp cried out for directions she told them to just keep going ahead.

"YOU CAN'T BE SERIOUS?!" he yelled.

"Don't doubt me when it comes to direction!" Nami beamed proudly. "I'm the navigator for a reason after all!"

"And you're the best navigator in the world, Nami!" Sanji told her lovey-dovey.

"Just trust me!" her past self yelled to them as Luffy finally came down from the mast and landed next to her.

"Have we made it? Is that the canal entrance?" he asked at once.

"What else would it be?!" Franky laughed. He knew that he had once climbed up this very mountain when he was a child, but that had been so long ago that he didn't remember it. But this was going to be good—he could feel it.

"More than likely," memory Nami said and he grinned enthusiastically.

"I gotta be dreaming!" past Zoro yelled, looking through the binoculars at the red wall that was in front of them. Through the thick mists in front of them they could see it… "It's impossible! The ocean really is flowing up the mountain!"

Through several gray water gates—each decorated with elaborate images—the water was being forced right up the mountain creating, what looked like, a pathway to the sky.

"We have to make it through those water gates just right!" Nami called to them all, taking charge, "Or we'll be crashed right into the Red Line and be smashed to pieces!"

Onwards they sailed but they were drifting off slightly. Luffy noticed this too and yelled, "We're drifting off course! Gotta go more to the right! Right!"

"Right?" Usopp yelled as he and Sanji pulled on the rudder, "You mean starboard!" They pushed, with Usopp yelling at Sanji to put his back into it. And he really did… at that moment they ended up breaking the rudder and smashing into the table.

"Good going," Franky said sarcastically. Good luck sailing without the rudder. As amazing as the Merry had come to be, she just wasn't build for this harsh weather.

The other three stared in horror. "THE RUDDER!" they all screamed just as they were about to crash into the first gate.

"What are you going to do now?!" Chopper screamed anxiously. If they didn't think of something fast, they were going to crash. But Luffy was one step ahead. He passed his treasured hat to Zoro and jumped out just in time. He inflated himself just as the ship hit… and he acted like an airbag so that he ended up stopping the ship. His face turned blue as he struggled to hold back the ship… and then after several painful seconds—with the Merry pressing hard on him, it had bounced off enough that it was now heading straight up the water.

"HE DID IT!" Brook cheered. Luffy was falling to the sea as Zoro shouted out for him to grab his hand. Luffy deflated and stretched his hand out to be pulled painfully to the deck so that his head crashed through the deck. Usopp and Sanji were both dancing in the cabin as they continued to climb higher and higher.

The four current Straw Hats were laughing at this, remembering the feeling—the rush, the joy… the idea that they would soon finally reach the Grand Line… it all came back like water bursting from a damn.

It was a rush from there on out. The rain had stopped and Nami pulled off her coat to hold it above her head like a banner as they flew up the mountain side. "NOW IT'S JUST A STRAIGHT SHOT TO THE SUMMIT!" she cried joyfully as Luffy pulled his head out.

"I'M FREE!" he called happily as he went charging up to the upper deck, wanting to see everything. He laughed as he stood next to Zoro and stared around excitedly. Everyone, both the past selves, and the present versions could feel the adrenaline rush as they rode on, the wind wiping around their hair—everyone was smiling widely as they went to the top, but before they arrived. Someone appeared on the railing.

From the cabin behind them, a slender man with long sharp fingernails and purple hair, curled upwards in the shape like a hook jumped on the railing.

"Oh… I forgot about him," Zoro said, now irritated that he had to come in and ruin the fun here.

"Who's that?" Robin asked in surprise.

"Eric the sicko," Sanji said bitterly, now wishing that he could've kicked his ass. "He snuck onboard our boat after he failed to get the Dragonite and was trying to kill us. Of course… we took care of him. What an idiot…"

"Curse you, you damn pirates!" Eric yelled and the Straw Hats stopped in mid-celebration and looked up in surprise.

"He's back!" Nami yelled.

"The sicko guy!" cried Luffy startled.

"Damn it," Sanji said, who had been in the middle of a jig with Usopp.

"Thought swirly-head was dead," Zoro said.

"Yeah, I did too," Luffy agreed.

"SHUT UP!" Eric yelled at them, holding up two fingers as he yelled how much he despised them all. How that, thanks to them, he would never get the Dragonite and that he was going to make them pay by killing them and collecting Luffy's bounty.

"He's kidding right?" Franky asked skeptically. This guy ruined such a special moment for something like that? Their past selves were all looking nervous at the thought of his wind slashes destroying their ship and were all trying to think of a way out of this.

"We'll only get one shot at this," past Zoro said as Eric burst out laughing. He boasted at how they couldn't lay a finger on him and that they should just surrender, but Nami took care of him by pointing to the side and asking, "Is that Dragonite?!"

"He did not…?" Robin asked with a laugh.

"He bought that?" Brook yelled in surprise.

"Greed was his downfall," Zoro said. And sure enough, like an idiot, Eric looked down and Nami used this distraction to kick his leg out and caused him to fall overboard—he skipped across the water behind them several times and disappeared.

Nami waved happily, "Bye Bye!"

"That was harsh," Franky said, moving his sunglasses and looking back, feeling a little sorry for that guy.

"It was his own fault," Sanji said firmly, pulling his cigarette out. "He snuck on and tried to kill us. We had to do something to keep him from killing us."

"But…?" Chopper said slowly, looking back and not seeing a trace of Eric.

"I wouldn't worry about it," Zoro said as their past selves were looking at Nami in surprise and all complimented her for her fast thinking. "Something tells me that he might've survived."

"Really?" Chopper asked him. He was a doctor, and he just couldn't stand the thought of someone dying. Especially since a Devil Fruit User fell into the sea… he had come close to almost drowning several times and it was a terrifying experience that he wouldn't wish on anyone.

Zoro shrugged. Maybe it was a little cold-hearted, but they were pirates and they had to do what it took to survive here. He knew that guy was probably dead, but he didn't want to tell Chopper that, especially if that guy did survive. Regardless, he doubted they would ever run into him again.

He forced a smile at their doctor before they turned back to the celebrating crew, continuing on as if nothing had happened. Soon though, Luffy had run up to the Merry's head and hung there as he cried out about how high they were and soon they were in the clouds. On they flew up, passing the thick clouds and bursting through the haze; soon the air was clear and there was nothing but blue sky and bright sunlight.

"This is insane!" Luffy yelled and they were all laughing with him at what they were seeing, "We're not in the clouds we're above them!"

It was true, and there was the peak of the mountain. The water collected at the top and from the cold air it would freeze instantly—resembling beautiful shards of crystal before shattering in a spectrum of colorful glitter.

"It's gorgeous," Robin whispered, smiling widely. She had been here before, but she couldn't remember ever really appreciating just how beautiful it had been.

"It's amazing! We've reached the summit!" past Nami cried in amazement as they went up and hit the top, they went airborne for a brief moment, hovering in the air before they fell again, sliding down the mountain like a great water slide.

Usopp, Chopper, Nami, Brook, and Franky were all screaming with joy as they enjoyed the ride down, feeling the wind go rushing by. Sanji, Robin, and Zoro merely smiled as they hung back to watch—but each one of them were enjoying the thrill of exhilaration that was pounding inside them.

Each and every one of them remembered their dreams and everything that they had gone through together as Luffy looked up and screamed in joy. In front of them, beyond the clouds was the vast blue sea. The water of the Grand Line… they had finally made it.

"I can see it!" Luffy yelled, laughing as he held onto his hat, "This is the greatest sea in the whole world! Somewhere out there the One Piece is waiting and we're gonna find it! LET'S GO!"

**(Sorry for the usually long wait. But I've been busy here lately, and this chapter is longer than I've been usually doing. I guess I just wanted to hurry and get them to the Grand Line here. I hope that I didn't make it too long here. Hopefully, you'll enjoy it. And please be kind...)**


	20. Whales, Princesses, and Dinosaurs: OH MY

**Chapter 20: Whales, Princesses, and Dinosaurs: OH MY!**

This had been the best memory yet.

The Straw Hats all enjoyed the break-neck ride down Reverse Mountain, the wind blowing past them as they continued to pick up speed as they went, the water sprayed everywhere creating more mist. Their memory selves were all shouting in joy—obviously loving every minute of it.

"I can't believe that this all happened over two years ago!" Usopp yelled joyfully, everything rushing back to him in a happy blur. Before he joined this crew, he never once thought that he would've made it to the Grand Line—but now look at him here in the New World! He had already changed a lot when they first came here and he couldn't help but wonder just how much more he could change by the next time that they see this mountain.

"It was stormy the night that I came to the Grand Line too, Yohohoho!" Brook laughed happily. "This all takes me back! Nice to know that some things stayed the same."

Downwards they sped, almost as if they were on a waterslide, breaking through the clouds so that they couldn't see anything but the white fog in front of them. All five were laughing, sounding as if they didn't have a care in the world… but then memory Zoro was shouting out, "Did you just hear something?"

"Huh, what's that?" Nami yelled over at him as the present-day Straw Hats stopped laughing long enough to hear them.

"That groaning sound!" past Zoro shouted out, "Didn't you hear it?!"

"It was probably just the wind!" she dismissed at him as they started to go even faster, "At this speed, everything sounds distorted!"

But then they heard it—a distance wailing that sounded like a foghorn had come through the clouds.

"What is that?" Chopper yelled as memory Usopp began to look through his goggles to try and find that answer as well. But Brook suddenly remembered and was looking around desperately. Was this possibly…?

"Nami!" screamed Sanji from the mast, "I see a mountain up ahead!"

"Another mountain?" repeated Robin in surprise. "There's not supposed to be anything but ocean here once you get over Reverse Mountain."

"Not a stone mountain anywhere," current Zoro stated casually, remembering what—or rather _who_—they met here.

"WHAT?! THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE!" memory Nami yelled up at him in panic.

"But it's right there!" Sanji screamed back as he pointed in front of them, "I can _see_ it!"

"Who cares!?" Luffy yelled from the Merry's head—and it was obvious that he couldn't have cared less to what might happen. "GO!"

"Of course he's not concerned," current Nami sighed, "I bet that he would still be laughing even if _was_ a mountain."

"But what are you guys talking about…?" Franky began as past Nami began to scream that they should be home free after they pass the Twin Capes. But then that groaning wail sounded off once again, louder than ever so that no one could deny that they didn't hear it.

"NO!" Brook shouted out as he ran to the upper deck so that he was right beside Luffy as he tried to see through the clouds. "IT CAN'T BE!"

Zoro smiled, knowing that Soul King was about to lose his mind when he saw how big his old friend became. Luffy was now trying to squint his eyes through the thick fog—trying to make something out. Just then, they broke through the white sheet and all that could be seen was a vast navy blue, almost black—which caused the five memory Straw Hats, Franky and Chopper to scream in shock.

"It's a black wall!" Luffy screamed in fear.

"No, it's not…!" memory Nami shouted in horror as she grabbed hold of the railing, tears in her eyes.

"Then what is it!?" memory Zoro yelled before she could finish.

"It's a…" Chopper exclaimed, his eyes wide when he heard the words behind the wailing.

"It's a whale!" past Usopp screamed.

"It… It's Laboon!" Brook shrieked out, unable to believe his eyes as his boney hands were shaking as he stared up at the familiar whale, though his size was not recognizable. To say that this whale was enormous would be the understatement of the century… in front of them was a magnificent creature that was so large, it looked like it could swallow an entire island in one gulp. The whale's massive mouth opened a little so that they could see the row of sharp teeth, and a single tooth about the size of the Merry, if not bigger… and his great head was also covered in dozens of scars, both old and new.

But unaware of what was going on around him, the whale wailed out once again—the loudest one yet—that made the entire mountain shake. They all covered their ears, the noise piercing their brains and their eardrums felt as if they were about to burst.

"So that's Laboon?!" Chopper yelled, clamping his hooves over his ears to that they were flattened against his cap.

"I forgot how loud he was," Zoro hollered back, cursing in his mind at the blast.

"LABOON! LABOON! IS THAT REALLY YOU?! YOU'VE GOTTEN SO BIG!" Brook cried out as he tried to reach out and touch him; unable to stop the tears falling from his empty eye sockets as he remembered that baby whale that was barely big enough for him to ride. He could hardly believe that they were one and the same.

"You were right, he does look just like the pod of whales we saw when we left Fishman Island," Robin called, staring at him in fascination.

The memory Straw Hats, however, were all screaming in a panic.

"W… wha… what are we gonna do!?" memory Usopp screamed out, looking ready to faint as he stared at them all, desperate that one of them had a plan here.

"Should we fight?" Luffy suggested quickly.

"That's his answer for everything. Unfortunately, fighting doesn't solve all our problems," current Nami stated as her past self started screaming at him.

"Idiot, how are we supposed to fight a HUNDRED TON WHALE?!" she demanded hysterically.

"Well, do something!" past Usopp screamed at them both. "Our path is blocked! How do we escape?!"

"Calm down," memory Sanji yelled—though he too sounded close to losing his mind in blind fear, "If this creature looks like a giant wall to us, we must be a speck!"

"Good point," Franky yelled as they were getting closer to Laboon with every second, "I mean… this ship is puny! About half the size of most common ships these days. I wouldn't be surprised at all to guess that he hasn't even noticed you guys yet."

"Even if that's true, it won't do much good if they don't do something about stopping," Robin reminded him coolly, and she reached into her bag to pull out her sketchbook to draw Laboon.

Past Zoro realized that as well and yelled out that it wouldn't matter if they were small to him because they were going to crash right into him unless they changed course. "Look!" he then shouted, pointing to Laboon's side where there was an opening, "We can get by on the left! Port! Hard to port!"

"The rudder's broken!" past Usopp reminded him loudly.

"Man, just getting to the Grand Line almost killed us," current Sanji stated casually. Though he remembered the terror they experienced before, it was almost funny seeing it now.

"Just one bit of bad luck followed by another," Robin stated in light amusement. "Most would find it hard to take after awhile."

"We got used to it," Zoro informed her with a shrug.

"Do something, dammit!" memory Zoro yelled, and it was strange to see him lose control of his calm like this, "Anything!"

"Wait! I know!" Luffy yelled as he jumped off the figurehead and headed straight down to the hull. "This'll work, it has to!"

"What is he up to here?" Franky asked as memory Nami yelled after that same question, but he didn't stick around to answer as he disappeared through the front of the ship. The present-day Straw Hats stayed above deck as the three men went and tried to pull what was left of the rudder to the left.

"This is pointless!" past Usopp yelled as the other two cursed, "The ship's not gonna turn!"

Just as they had almost reached Laboon—below deck there was an enormous blast which could only mean one thing…

"THE CANNON?!" they heard the others scream.

"He didn't…?" Franky asked just as the impact of the blast shot the ship back slightly and blew up in front of them once it hit the whale. Brook—who hadn't looked away from Laboon—screamed in horror at what he saw.

"LABOON!" he cried out, thinking that his friend had been hurt.

"Relax!" current Sanji yelled at him. "I don't think he even felt it."

"That was clever actually," Robin stated as everyone tried to regain their footing. The cannon had stopped them from crashing right into Laboon and being destroyed, but it wasn't enough to stop them completely. The ship had slowed down considerably but when it bumped into the whale, it ended up breaking off the Merry's figurehead. The sheep's head broke with a loud CRACK and went flying overhead so that when it hit the deck they could hear Luffy's scream of horror, "HEY! THAT WAS MY SPECIAL SEAT!"

Chopper and Usopp were both taking that hard as well as Merry's head lay there sadly on its side. But once everyone had caught their breath and let sink in what happened, the memory selves broke out the paddles and were now trying to slip past Laboon without him noticing anything.

Memory Zoro, Usopp, and Sanji were all yelling at each other about what just happened. "Damn, let's get out of here before it's too late!" Zoro began.

"Someone mind telling me what the heck is going on?!" Usopp shouted back, looking ready to cry.

"It's so big that the cannonball didn't even make it flinch!" past Sanji cried as they were working hard to paddle, "That, or his reaction time is really slow!"

"Who cares!?" past Zoro yelled at him, "At least we're alive!"

"I can't remember seeing you all freak out like this," Chopper said as he looked to memory Nami, who was lying there as if in shock.

"Well, we weren't expecting a giant whale to be the first thing to greet us to the Grand Line," Sanji told him. "And we did almost die here."

Once again, Laboon howled out, feeling as if his voice was a shockwave, they memory Straw Hats were all trying to block out the sound and only focused on paddling right past him. But now that they were close enough, Brook was trying to reach out and touch him.

"Laboon!" he cried; the tears beginning to flow more fluently. "It's me!" He gasped, and for a few moments, he had to clasp his hands over his jaw in order to speak more clearly through his cries. "Laboon I can't believe it's you!"

"But Brook, it's only a memory, he can't really see or hear us!" Usopp yelled, pointing up at him. But Brook ignored him as he continued to cry louder, desperate for Laboon to hear him.

"LABOON! IT'S ME!" he screamed out, as he began to sing out a few verses of Bink's Sake. "PLEASE HEAR ME! IT'S ME! BROOK! FROM THE RUMBAR PIRATES!"

Chopper was trying to listen to what Laboon was saying, but they kept rowing until they were passing right underneath Laboon's eye, which was easily more than four times bigger than the little ship, and even now, the Sunny wasn't even half it's size in comparison.

As Brook continued to try and get Laboon's attention, Luffy came back up to the deck, looking furious.

"Luffy?" memory Nami whispered, wondering just what it was that he was going to do now.

"You think you can break my special seat and get away with it?!" Luffy yelled as he balled his fist as he punched Laboon right in the eye. "TAKE THIS!"

"What an idiot! What did he think that was going to change?" current Nami sighed.

"Luffy-san! What are you doing? How could you do that to Laboon?!" Brook yelled angrily.

"He never thinks before he acts," current Sanji reminded him.

"YOU MORON!" all the Straw Hats in the memory yelled—each one of them had tears of fear in their eyes. For a second, time seemed to freeze for nothing could be heard but the sounds of the waves hitting the ship… but then Laboon's massive eye suddenly looked down at them and they screamed in terror.

"It sees us!" they yelled, and looked ready to start paddling like crazy away from there.

Luffy, naturally, stood his ground. "I'm not through with you! There's a lot more where that came from!"

"Don't you dare!" Brook yelled. It was the first time that he ever said something like that to his captain. Even though this was all history, Brook sounded ready to fight Luffy for threatening Laboon.

Zoro put a hand on his shoulder to get him to remember what was going on here. "Just calm down. I know you're upset, but you just have to watch everything to understand."

Brook looked back at him, looking completely lost as both memory Zoro and Usopp kicked Luffy in the head, yelling at him that he could get them all killed.

Laboon groaned angrily before he slowly opened his massive mouth, revealing the large teeth once again.

"Please… no," memory Nami croaked out, now crying hard. But the rushing water going into Laboon's mouth was like a current and their little ship didn't stand a chance as it was quickly pulled in. It acted as a black hole… they were pulled right into Laboon's mouth and there wasn't anything they could do but hold on tight and hope for the best.

"We're being pulled in!" Chopper yelled over the roar of the water.

"So Laboon tried to eat you?!" cried out Brook as they tried to hang on.

"Pretty much!" Sanji yelled back. "And you'll never believe how we got out!"

But as they were swept away into Laboon's mouth, Luffy was knocked overboard—screaming the whole way as his crew called after him earnestly. Luffy almost hit the water, but had enough sense to stretch his arms out and grab onto one of Laboon's teeth and hung on tightly.

"I am not gonna die here!" they heard Luffy growled as he held on for dear life. Through the wind he struggled to climb his way up. After a few moments, Laboon closed his mouth, eating the Going Merry whole—the ship spinning as if it was going down the drain. However… it was almost anti-climatic when it was over.

"Well, that was… dramatic while it lasted?" offered Robin as they were suddenly standing on Laboon's head as the memory shifted ever so slightly so that they were still with Luffy.

"I can't believe it!" Franky yelled, staring around, "You guys got eaten?! By a whale?"

"Yep," Zoro said with a nod, "However, compared to some of the other stuff that's happened to us since coming to this place, it's actually pretty tame.

"Oh, so this is normal for you guys?" Franky laughed as Brook was now on his knees, running his hands over Laboon's skin. Though he couldn't really anything, if he thought hard, he could remember the rubbery, smooth skin from when he last saw the whale. But what concerned him were the thick scars on his head.

"Laboon…" he whispered tearfully, "I miss you so much! But what happened to you here? So many scars…? Chopper-san? Do you know what did this?"

Chopper came running over at once to examine them. "I've never treated a whale before," he said, although he did get an idea to what caused these scars when he got a good look at them. "It looks to me that these scars look like he's been hitting his head against something…?" What concerned him was though most of these were old scars, a lot of them looked fairly new—as if they were only a few days old. He frowned, running a hoof over the nearest scar… it looked barely healed.

"Will he be alright?!" Brook asked quickly, anxiety filled in his non-existing heart.

"He should be once they heal," Chopper said to him as some of the Straw Hats behind them all looked at each other worriedly, as if trying to think of the best way to break the news to him.

Just then, Luffy had been able to climb up to join them on Laboon's head, breathing heavily as if he had run for hours. As he attempted to catch his breath, he had anger and fear on his face as he looked around, wondering what to do.

"Ah man…?" Luffy stated, barely controlling his panic. "Everyone was swallowed whole!"

"It's a surprise that you weren't digested after getting swallowed," Robin informed them as she began work on drawing Laboon's eye.

"Yeah, we would have if we had been there for too long," Sanji agreed, "But thankfully, we ended up meeting someone who helped us out."

"HEY!" Luffy's voice suddenly shouted out and caused them to all look up.

Luffy was now punching Laboon, yelling that he spit them all at once. Though they weren't sure if Laboon could feel those punches, he stared to submerge. "Where do you think you're going you jerk?!" Luffy demanded, sounding more and more angry with each second. "Listen you big whale I'm not gonna ask again! Stop sinking! I mean it! My friends and me are on an important adventure! I can't lose them!"

"I'm touched," Usopp said, his heart feeling a little warm at how concerned he was for them all.

Luffy seemed to be going nuts as he screamed out, "GIVE THEM BAAAAAACCCCCCCK!"

"He better do something before he sinks completely," Chopper cried out. He knew that they were safe, but he still didn't feel secure to be standing on the ocean like this so he jumped up to Zoro's shoulder.

Meanwhile, Laboon was continuing to go down and it would only be a matter of seconds before Luffy would sink. The water was rising up quickly and as they stared around for a way out, Luffy noticed something embedded in Laboon's head.

"What's that?" Chopper asked in surprise.

"It looks like… a hatch?" Franky said startled, "Almost like a submarine hatch!"

"Now that is an unusual blowhole," Robin stated calmly. Luffy noticed that as well and, without thinking, he ran over to it and opened it so that he could jump in. They all followed after him so that they were standing with him as he closed the little door. They could hear the water washing around them as they caught their breath. They made it just in time…

But they were all staring around with Luffy—who looked too stunned to speak here.

"I don't know much about whales," he said to himself after he got a good look around and they felt their jaws drop. They were standing in an iron hallway with light hanging every few feet, "But since when do they have doors and lighted hallways?"

"That is a very good question, captain," Franky said, staring around in amazement. "Is Laboon a cyborg?"

"No, but not a bad guess," Nami told them as they walked down the hall, right behind Luffy. But then something else happened—the room seemed to tilt and Luffy was knocked off his feet so that he went tumbling down, all of them sliding to catch up with him. They kept going, watching Luffy bouncing around like a rubber ball down the hallway until they ended up in a large tunnel with metal walkways on either side of a river.

"Laboon! What's happened to you?!" cried out Brook in great confusion. Just how did all this happen?

"It's alright," Usopp told him quickly. "It doesn't hurt him at all apparently! Crocus did all this to help him!"

"Huh? Crocus-san…?" Brook asked, looking up as Luffy bounced around violently and landing with a painful thudding sound on the walkway. Gasping for breath, Luffy raised his head and stared around.

"Hey that's weird… the whale's got a river inside it too?" he gasped as the room began to shake again and was tilted up one way.

"Here we go again!" Nami cried out as Luffy tried to hold on so that he wouldn't go sliding down again, but it was too steep for him. He slipped and fell, all of them starting to feel a little green at the constant falling and moving floor.

"This is getting crazy!" Sanji yelled, and he thought they had it bad stuck in Laboon's stomach. Despite all the constant rocking back and forth, after a few minutes, Luffy had been able to straighten up enough so that he was now running down the hall, looking like he wanted nothing more than to get out of this place. He was waving his arms around in panic, trying to stop himself, but before he could, they looked up in time to see two people standing in front large of a large, metal door. The two were a strange looking duo… there was a middle aged man with a large crown on the top of his long hair and the numbers 9 written on each of his cheeks. The second was a young woman with long, wavy blue hair tied in a tight ponytail and a bit of a stuck-up expression.

"VIVI?!" Chopper cried out in shock. He didn't think that they would run into her again this soon.

"That's right!" Nami yelled, a smile on her face as she saw her, "We met Vivi here!" It was so good to see her again.

But Vivi didn't see pleased to see Luffy. She and her partner looked scared stiff at seeing someone come running at them, screaming at the top of his lungs, before he slammed right into them with such force that the doors were forced open and they were flying through the air.

"One heck of a way to introduce yourself!" laughed Usopp as they also went jumping through the doorways with them. It was a bit of a shock to find that they were back under a blue sky and clouds—along with a small island, complete with a coconut tree and shack with the Merry right alongside it.

"Oh good! We're outside again!" Chopper cried in relief, he had been starting to feel claustrophobic trapped in those metal walls. But the Zoro, Nami, Sanji, and Usopp with them all felt a little sweat-drop at those words, wondering just how they could explain that they weren't outside. But then Chopper realized something and asked, "Wait, how did you guys get out?"

"When you gotta go," Franky suggested with a laugh, "You gotto go."

Nami gave him a hard punch in the head, yelling out, "DON'T BE SO DISGUSTING! WE ARE STILL IN LABOON'S STOMACH!"

"WHAT?!" cried Brook in amazement, as he stared around him. "But there's the sky! And clouds! And seagulls!"

"No, look," Robin said, as they all landed on the water, standing above it like always. She noticed that there was something not right… "Nothing's moving! It's… painted on?"

"WHAT!?" Chopper yelled, glancing up and realizing it's true.

"Yep," Nami gasped for breath as she landed next to them. "Believe it or not, it's a giant mural inside Laboon's stomach! Crocus painted it."

"I guess living inside a whale's stomach would make you bored after awhile," Franky reasoned. But who would have that much spare time in hallowing out and painting the inside of a whale? Whoever this Crocus guy was, he seems a bit insane. Then again, he did sail on the same ship as Rayleigh, and that guy was anything but normal. He wondered just how strong this guy was…?

"Luffy?" past Zoro's voice came from the ship, and they saw the four of them standing on deck as they watched Luffy and the other two go flying by.

"Zoro! Is everyone okay?!" Luffy yelled in relief before he realized that there wasn't much to stand on and he was falling fast. "So ah… I can use a hand!" he yelled before the memory faded with the three of them hitting the digestive juice.

When the night sky came back, the Straw Hats noticed that they could no longer see the shore and were somewhere in the green fields again. No one really talked as they thought it all over. Brook, without a doubt, was in the worse shape as he cried out with Nami, Usopp, and Chopper all trying to comfort him.

"Man, that's something you don't see everyday," Franky said, thinking it all over, sure that he had been dreaming that stuff up. "But who's that Vivi person you guys were talking about?"

"Princess Nefertari Vivi of Alabasta Kingdom," Robin answered, her voice a little grim at the name. "I didn't realize that you met her here. Now that I think of it, they were ordered there to kill the whale."

"WHAT?!" screamed Brook as he jumped to his feet, looking furious. "YOU MEAN THEY WERE TRYING TO KILL LABOON?!"

"Which they failed to do!" Nami told him loudly, hoping that he wouldn't bear a grudge against Vivi for this. "She was like an honorary member of the crew once we got to know her! She didn't really want to kill Laboon, I'm sure!"

"Yeah, Vivi's really nice," Chopper added, still patting Brook's leg since he couldn't reach any higher. "I'm sure that you'll see that soon!"

"Oh, Vivi-chan! My love! How long has it been?!" Sanji swooned as he fell to his knees, his face a bright red and another nosebleed was on the way.

But his declares of true love were interrupted by the next memory. From the looks of things, they had just fished Luffy and the other two out and were all on deck—and the constant shaking had stopped and there was a deep, almost humming sound that they could hear echoing off Laboon's stomach walls.

"I don't claim to speak whale," memory Nami said, going to the railing and looking around, "But it seems to have calmed down a bit."

"Seems that way," memory Zoro said, looking at Vivi and the man, who Robin informed them as being Mr. 9. "Now, we saved your lives for the time being," he told them irritably, "you better talk and make it quick."

Memory Sanji was right up next to Vivi and was almost drooling when he saw her. She looked at him with a mixture of apprehension and repugnance as she moved closer to Mr. 9. They then heard her whisper, "Mr. 9… these heathens are pirates."

"Heathens? That's a new insult on me," Zoro told them all. Then again, Vivi wasn't very good with names or insults. After all, he couldn't remember her ever calling him by his name—other than Mr. Bushido.

Mr. 9 looked to her and they heard him whisper back, "Yes, that's painfully obvious Miss Wednesday. But if we speak to their humanity and compassion, they should understand our plight! Maybe…?"

"You know… we can hear every word they're saying," Usopp said, all of them shaking their heads at this.

"Well, I noticed that some people do tend to think that pirates are stupid," Nami proclaimed. And she admitted that when you met people like Luffy, Zoro, Sanji, and Usopp… she could understand why.

"You parasites are still here?!" yelled an aged voice from above them, and they looked up to see an old man standing up on a small iron platform next to the enormous gate that they had come charging out of. He had a rather stocky and muscular body, with a bald patch on the top of his head, but with white hair with yellow flower petal-like things.

"It's him! That's Crocus!" Nami yelled, pointing up at him.

"So that's the doctor of Roger's crew?" Franky asked, looking at him in great interest.

Brook was staring at him, never really realizing just how much people change in fifty years. When he first met him, he had been young and strong with a lot of muscle… but here, it almost didn't look like the same person.

But he could still detect that same voice in there as Crocus declared loudly, "I grow weary of this and for the last time! As long as I draw breath you will not lay a single harmful finger on Laboon!"

"You tell them, Crocus-san!" Brook declared, his hand on his sword. "And I vow that as long as there is breath in this body, I won't let anyone harm Laboon either! Not that I have breath anymore, Yohohoho!"

"He's back again," past Usopp said as Luffy looked to them and asked who he was.

"You already met him?" Chopper asked Usopp and he nodded.

"Yeah, we met him after we got stuck in here, I think it's a good thing that these guys came flying out when they did because he was driving us crazy," Usopp sighed, "What a crazy old man he was."

Suddenly, Vivi and Mr. 9 were laughing. "You can't bully us into abandoning our mission!" Vivi said in a conceited voice as she picked up one of two bazookas that they had been carrying with them.

"We were sent here to hunt this whale and that's exactly what we're gonna do!" Mr. 9 yelled in agreement as he also picked up one, "And this time we won't let you interfere!" They held up the guns as Luffy looked on. "WE'RE ABOUT TO GIVE THIS WHALE A NEW BLOWHOLE! FIRE BABY!"

"DON'T YOU DARE!" Brook screamed as they launched the two cannonballs at the walls of Laboon's stomach. Brook yelled with a mixture of horror and rage as he jumped up, ready to take the hit, but the two cannonballs passed right through him. "LABOON NO!" he yelled, but then Crocus acted for him. He jumped right into the line of fire—protecting the whale from the weapons.

Brook stared as Crocus, burnt and injured, fell into the pool of acid as the memory Straw Hats all gasped at what he had done.

"He took the hit!" Chopper screamed. "And he fell right into hydrochloric acid! He'll dissolve!"

"Relax, it'll take a lot more than that to kill him off," Zoro stated firmly, remembering seeing the old man willingly jump into the pool before. "He's tougher than he looks!"

"I guess!" Franky yelled out.

Vivi let out an annoying laugh and proclaimed, "Your defiance is pointless!"

"Go ahead! Waste your time!" Mr. 9 yelled and Vivi continued to laugh, "But make no mistake! That hulking beast will provide food for our town!" With Crocus now trying to stay afloat in the acid, the two continued to cackle and Luffy seemed to lose his patience. He slammed their heads so hard that he knocked them out.

"Thank you," Franky said in annoyance, "That laugh was getting to me."

"How dare that rubber idiot hit a lady?!" Sanji snapped furiously.

"Ah… what was that for?" past Usopp asked him.

"I just…" Luffy said looking up in aggravation, "Wanted to hit them!"

"I don't blame him for that, I wanted to hit them too," Brook said, furious that they would ever think to hurt such a gentle creature. But if this Vivi was their friend…? He did his best to try and beat that anger down, waiting to see what happened next.

After they fished Crocus out and tied the two up, the old doctor invited them over to the island—which the four explained to the other Straw Hats who weren't here that it was actually a ship with an iron bottom so it could float here without worry of dissolving. "I thank you for saving my life," Crocus said gratefully once he made himself comfortable in a lawn chair, "Though I must ask, why did you do it?"

"I wasn't trying to save you," Luffy answered bluntly as he started to climb the tree, "There was just something about those two I didn't like."

"If rudeness was a reason to attack someone, half the world would be dead by tomorrow," Robin answered calmly.

"Ok, I think it's about time we got some answers," past Nami said in annoyance as Usopp tried to pull Luffy back down the tree. "Who are these guys?" she asked, pointing to Vivi and Mr. 9. "And how did you end up inside this whale?!"

"These two are thugs from a nearby town looking for whale meat," Crocus answered grumpily, "If they caught him, Laboon could feed the townspeople for at least two or three years easy. All they're concerned with is feeding their fat, greedy bellies."

Brook's skeletal fingers tightened around his cane, and his teeth were cracking together as he fought to keep his anger from rising out of control again.

"Laboon?" past Nami repeated in confusion.

"That's the whale's name," Crocus answered gruffly, "He a unique and magnificent creature. An Island Whale, a rare species that can only be found in the West Blue. I won't allow them to slaughter him for food."

"I agree," Robin said, admiring her sketch of the whale and smiled, "He truly is an amazing creature. I should've guessed that he'd be after we came across the pod of Island Whales."

"They were Laboon's relatives weren't they?" Chopper asked eagerly.

"They are a very rare species, so I would say that is a very good possibility," Robin answered.

"But if these whales are found only in the West Blue… how did we end up meeting them in the Grand Line?" Usopp asked in confusion.

"You saw how big they were, I guess that even an entire West Blue sea isn't big enough all the time," Sanji answered, "I mean, it's not that hard to think that such a large pod of whales don't visit the Grand Line from time to time. They're bigger than some Sea Kings and I'm sure they can take care of themselves."

"It's a shame he's stuck here so far from his domain," Crocus went on with sigh, "You see there's a reason he keeps hitting his head against the Red Line and hollering at Reverse Mountain."

"There is?" past Nami asked a little quietly.

"Yes," Crocus answered looking at them, "To put it one way, inside Laboon's body beats the heart of a human. He has most impatiently awaited and is eternally devoted to a certain band of pirates." He paused and added, "Going on fifty long years now."

Zoro clapped a hand on Brook again, who had frozen, and was also shaking a little at his words.

"All who have seen Laboon ask the same questions," Crocus went on, "Why does he continuously strike his body against the Red Line? Why does he keep howling at Reverse Mountain? Listen closely and I will reveal Laboon's tragic story."

"He's really good at storytelling," Franky said in awe before he looked to Usopp, "Maybe you should've taken a few lessons from him so that your stories sound a little more believable, bro."

"Hey! My stories are amazing!" Usopp yelled.

"But I think that's the problem," Nami added, "They're so unbelievable that they're hard to take seriously."

Crocus sighed and began, "One fine, sunny day… while I was fulfilling my duties as Lighthouse Keeper… some good-natured pirates came down from Reverse Mountain. They were followed by a baby whale, spry and chipper, who I would soon come to know as the one and only, Laboon."

And so he told them the whole story. How these pirates had met up with a baby whale while they had sailed the West Blue, and Laboon had traveled with them for most of their journey. But knowing how dangerous the Grand Line was, they had decided that it was in Laboon's best interest to leave him behind where he would be safe. But Laboon had followed after them anyway because he had come to see these pirates as his family.

The damaged that their ship had taken just getting to the Grand Line however was very extensive so they decided to stay here for several months to sing with Laboon until repairs were made. After about three months, and their ship finally repaired, they had asked Crocus to take care of Laboon for them until they came back. They had promised that when they finished sailing around the world, they would come back for him and that the whale would then come with them on their future adventures.

Crocus sighed and finished his tale by saying, "That was fifty long years ago."

"Fifty years?" past Sanji repeated as they all stared at him.

"So Laboon has been waiting here all this time for his friends to return?" memory Usopp whispered, his eyes wide and his jaw falling open at hearing that.

"No one he's upset," memory Nami said, looking up at the whale with new sympathy, "That kind of wait would drive anyone crazy."

They could hear Laboon's voice crying out once again and Brook started to cry again. "Chopper-san?" he asked tearfully and Chopper looked a little startled at what he asked him next, "What is he saying? Can you hear him?"

"I…" Chopper trailed off. He did understand what Laboon was saying, but he didn't want to tell him. He didn't think that Brook could stand it. But Brook was insistent on it, asking him over and over to just tell him what Laboon's words were as the memory Straw Hats climbed up on the ship and had Crocus lead them out through the door and through a long canal inside Laboon's body.

"He's… he's saying…" Chopper gulped out as tears entered his eyes. "_'Where are you? Where? It's been so long… I'm still waiting… when are you going to come back?!'_"

Chopper had been right. Brook broke down completely at those words, hating himself for taking so long to come back. How could he have ever been stupid enough to have gotten trapped in the Devil's Sea for so long? He knew now that he wasn't fit to be captain. Captain Yorki was and will always be the real captain of the Rumbar Pirates. But when they made him the next captain… he had been the one to lead the crew into that fog and got them all wiped out! Because of his stupidity, he ended up causing all this pain to his dear friend…

Chopper hugged him tightly as Soul King fell to his knees and cried. All of them were offering words of encouragement and kindness that Brook didn't feel that he deserved.

"This is some canal," past Zoro suddenly said and Brook held his crying back long enough to listen in. "Amazing this whale's still alive with a hole like this in its body."

"I suppose you're responsible for this?" past Sanji asked Crocus, as the little island boat went sailing alongside them. Crocus was reading the paper and didn't look up as he answered.

"Just a doctor's playful mind," he stated causally, as if telling them what day it was.

"Doctor?" past Usopp repeated in surprise.

"That's right," he answered, "Legally certified. I also ran a clinic on the Grand Line once upon a time. Before that I served as a ship's doctor."

"Right," Robin stated, thinking back, "That's what Rayleigh said. He joined up with Roger's crew so that he could find out what happened to you and the other Rumbar Pirates, Brook."

"What a good man, Crocus-san," Brook said softly. "But why did he do all this to Laboon…?" he added as he looked at the iron walls.

"Really?" Luffy said eagerly, as he sat up on the broke Merry's head. "That's great! Then join us! We need a doctor!"

"Don't be ridiculous!" he called back, stopping near a ladder and started to climb, "I no longer have that kind of energy! Exploring the seas is a young man's job!"

"It's a good thing that he didn't," Nami said, smiling at Chopper, "Otherwise Chopper never would've joined us."

Chopper blushed as he said, "Telling me something like that isn't going to make me feel happy you jerk!" They all smiled at him as past Sanji asked what kind of doctor would hallow out a whale's insides.

"Maybe it's part of the treatment?" memory Nami suggested as Crocus reached the top of the ladder and stood on a platform.

"The girl is right," he answered, looking back at them, "With a creature of this size is it's virtually impossible to treat it from the outside. Therefore I devised a more drastic solution. Here's the exit!" he added as he then turned a wheel and the large door opened up and they could see the sky… the real sky.

"Treatment?" repeated Brook in confusion and some of them all looked at each other anxiously, knowing that he wasn't going to take the news of where Laboon got those scars from well.

"Don't you think fifty years is a bit extreme?" past Usopp suddenly asked, "Those pirates sure know how to test someone's patience."

"What were you thinking?" Franky whispered to him, "Did you honestly believe that they would willingly keep him waiting for _fifty_ years?"

Usopp shrugged. He honestly didn't know what he was thinking when he said that.

"Idiot, don't you get it? This is the Grand Line!" past Sanji yelled at him as they moved the Merry's head onto the upper deck. "His friends are dead!" he blew out smoke from his cigarette and added, "That whale can wait forever, they won't be back."

Past Nami folded her arms and said, "Sad to say, but it's probably true. Back in the day when those guys traveled the Grand Line it was an uncharted sea. A thousand times more treacherous than it is now."

"I hate to imagine just what it had been like to sail these seas in those days," current Nami added kindly to Brook. "It must've truly been terrible."

"Well, it was far from easy," Brook said, finally starting to get a hold of his tears. He rubbed his eyes with his feathered boa and added, "Nothing in this sea makes sense… logic, reason, judgment… all of that is almost useless here. Unless you really knew how it was done, you didn't stand a chance of sailing here. I guess I should be happy that we lasted as long as we did in those days."

Past Usopp gave a grunt of anger and ran over to them, yelling, "Why are you all being so pessimistic? You don't know that they're dead! They could still come back for him! Come on, have some sympathy would ya? I thought it was very touching! I mean a whale still believing a promise that his friends made to him despite all these years?! That's a true bond! Right pops?"

"Yes," Brook answered softly. You could ask for a more loyal friend than Laboon.

"Indeed," Crocus agreed, but he leaned his hand against the coconut tree and answered, "But the lesson here is that reality is cruel. Laboon's cohorts aren't dead. The truth is that they abandoned their quest!"

And then told them that he learned that the pirates turned and left the Grand Line through the Calm Belt. He couldn't claim to know exactly what happened to them, but he doubted that they would ever return for him here.

"So if I got this straight," past Sanji said, now sounding angry, "These pirates were a bunch of cowards who cared more about saving their own asses than keeping a promise to a friend?!"

"THAT'S NOT TRUE!" Brook yelled out, furious that they would say that, and slamming his fists onto the ground so hard that, if he still had flesh and blood, he would be bleeding now. But he didn't care.

"So Crocus lied?" Nami asked in surprise, "That's not what really happened? Then how did he learn that?"

Brook was silent for a moment before he finally confessed, "It's only half true. But they didn't leave the Grand Line because they wanted to! You have to believe me!"

But before he could tell them any further, memory Usopp's voice rang out in outraged. "Why would anyone abandon such a loyal creature?! Just look at him! It's cruelty on a grand scale!"

"But if you've known all this, why haven't you told him?" past Nami asked Crocus, "Laboon can obviously communicate with you. He seems to understand humans quite well for a whale."

"Whales are all highly intelligent creatures," Robin stated, as she also looked up to him. "Even if they haven't been around humans like Laboon has, I think they can understand us."

"I _did_ tell him," Crocus admitted, "Down to the last miserable detail." He sighed as he said, "That was the day Laboon began to howl at Reverse Mountain. Soon after he started slamming his body against the Red Line. It's as if he believes that wall is what keeps his friends away. And that by breaking it, he can clear the path for their return."

"You mean…?" Brook began as he slowly began to understand what was happening here. "So… Laboon got those scars…? Because… because…?"

"Don't worry about him," Usopp said quickly to him, "Crocus had taken really good care of him all these years! And Luffy was the one who got him to stop slamming his head there!"

"What…? Luffy-san…?" Brook asked, completely startled as the past Straw Hats were admiring Laboon's dedication. "How did…?"

"He refuses to believe me because then he'll have to admit that it's over," Crocus said grimly, "And that though terrifies him more than anything. There's no way for him to go back to the West Blue so what we have here is a paradox of tragic proportions. Laboon is a lost soul dying to live with his friends, but won't stop killing himself to reach them."

Brook wanted to tune everything out—he didn't want to hear anymore, but he kept listening in. He wanted to know all of Laboon's pain. It was the least that he could do.

"Tragedy," past Sanji stated, "But still, despite all the grief those pirates put him through they did the same thing to you by saddling you with their burden." He pulled out his cigarette and asked what he was going to do—and added that he had done enough for Laboon.

"The scars on his hide are deep," Crocus answered simply, "Those in his heart are even deeper. He needs someone to tend his wounds and I'm all he's got. For years he's battered himself and I patched him up. A strange friendship but it works."

"Thank you, Crocus-san," Brook said between tears. He could never thank Crocus enough for taken care of him all these years. "And Laboon… please forgive me!"

"It'll be alright," Robin stated gently. "You still kept your promise despite all these years and are now fighting to get back to him."

"Yeah," Usopp added, unusually optimistic, "And we're already more than halfway around the world now! All we have to do is keep following the Log until we reach the Red Line again! And then Laboon will be able to come on adventures with us!"

"You mean it?" Brook asked softly, looking up at him.

"Of course," Sanji said with a rather wicked smile. "Don't see how we're going to be able to sail with something so big by our side, but hey, I'm sure we'll work something out."

"Complete approval!" Franky yelled out as he and Chopper cried at the touching scene, "I already love that whale!"

Brook sniffled and said simply, "Thank you all… that is so kind of you to say that."

"Hey guys?" Robin suddenly asked as she watched Luffy rip the mast off the Merry and went charging up to Laboon. "Why did Luffy just break off part of the ship?"

"Huh?" Chopper asked as they all turned to look. She was right, with a loud cry, Luffy hauled the heavy mast, sails and flag in all, up Laboon's head.

"We take our eyes off him for five minutes and he does this!" Usopp informed them all, shaking his head. Though he got why Luffy did it, it wasn't any fun trying to fix it.

"This is the reason why he needs to be chaperoned everywhere," Nami added with him darkly.

"Wait! Why the hell did he just break the mast off!?" demanded Franky furiously. "Do you not have any respect for your ship you rubber idiot!"

"It was for a good cause," Zoro stated as Luffy reached Laboon's head, and found a place that was already bleeding; most likely where he had slammed his head against the Red Line earlier. This was the opening that Luffy needed, and slammed the broken part of the mast right into the wound, causing blood to gush everywhere.

"LABOON!" screamed Brook, horrified at that. What was Luffy thinking?!

"IS HE STILL ANGRY?!" screamed Chopper furiously. "WASN'T HE LISTENING TO CROCUS AT ALL? IS THIS PAYBACK FOR WHEN HE SWALLOWED YOU GUYS?!"

"That's not like Luffy though," Robin answered softly as Franky's jaw dropped at what he just did.

This time, Laboon felt the pain and his eyes watered up in pain as he let out a loud howl of agony. Luffy hung on tightly to the mast as Laboon attempted to throw him off. Laboon was now angry as he jumped right out of the sea and slammed Luffy right into the Red Line with his body. The waves that the whale was creating almost ended up capsizing their ship, and with the sails still on Laboon's head, there wasn't anything their memory selves could do but hold on for dear life.

"I don't get it!" Chopper screamed over Laboon's moans. "What's the point? Why's Luffy doing this?!"

"Logic that makes sense only to that rubber brain," Zoro answered as Luffy got right back up and was now grinning cockily at Laboon. The whale was now seriously ticked off and went to smash him with his tail, which did end up hitting him. "Nami was wrong here…" Zoro finished, "this was settled in the end with a fight."

Luffy then punched him in his eye again, but Laboon retaliated by slamming him into the lighthouse. This continued on until Laboon had actually managed to lift a part of his body onto land to try and go at him again… but then Luffy suddenly screamed out, "It's a draw!"

Those words shocked Laboon so much that he stopped. Luffy looked up, dirty and bruised, but was smiling. "I'm stronger than I look! But I had a feeling you knew that."

Laboon just looked back, and even those who didn't understand whale could tell that he was completely lost here to what was going on.

"Luffy-san?" Brook said quietly. "What are you doing?"

"Giving Laboon something to look forward to," Zoro answered with a smile. "Though he goes about it in an unusual way, he gets things done. He gave Laboon another reason to keep living."

Brook stared at him in confusion until Luffy went on speaking.

"I can always tell when someone's itching for a fight," Luffy told him as he looked up. "Well, if you wanna battle I'll give you one! Your shipmates used to spare with you didn't they and you miss it? Well, I can rival anything they threw at ya! Tell you what. After me and my friends travel the Grand Line, we'll come back here and find you."

Tears were forming in Laboon's giant eyes as Luffy finished, "Then you better be ready for a rematch!"

"We… we did," Brook said softly, more tears falling from his eye sockets. "Just a little sparing… he was strong, even as a baby."

"So that's what he was doing!" Chopper cried out, now getting it. Tears were now falling from the whale's eyes—the anger and madness that had been there only seconds before seemed to fade as he let out another howl. But this time, it wasn't of sadness… it was the thrill of another fight.

Brook now understood completely why Luffy had gone out of his way to fight him. He wanted to give Laboon hope for the future… that, in an effort to give Laboon a renewed sense of hope, picked a fight with and then promised Laboon that he would return to see him, under the guise of wanting a rematch.

Luffy then did something else that brought, if that was possible, more tears to his eyes. After a while later, after they had retrieved the mast off Laboon's head, Luffy had gotten some paint and had managed to do a very poorly drawn version of their Jolly Roger on the whale's head where the scars were. It looked just like Luffy's first attempt to draw their flag before… and it just looked so funny painted there that they all laughed a little at it.

"Hey, not bad," Luffy commented as he looked back to admire his work, also covered in paint. "Consider this a symbol of my promise to come do battle with you!" he told him, "Course, it's a rushed paint job, so you'll have to be careful and avoid hitting your head or you'll rub it off! Understand?"

"Smart…" Robin said in an impressed tone, "Not just anyone would think of something like that. Now this will ensure that Laboon won't continue to risk his heath by smashing into the Red Line."

Laboon grunted in acknowledgment and Chopper said excitedly, "He said that he understood and that he'll make sure that he won't do anything to rub it off!"

"Good whale," Luffy stated happily.

"Thank you…" Brook said, his hand up to his jaw as more tears ran down, but these were tears of hope… just like the ones that Laboon had cried only moments ago. "Luffy-san… thank you."

"I'm sure that Laboon's doing just fine too," Usopp told him, "And won't he be in for a big surprise when he finds you there with us when we get back for that rematch?!"

"It's a day that I will dream about!" Brook declared as memory Nami told Luffy to clean himself up as she tried to work out a plan for the Grand Line journey. Luffy looked annoyed, but did what she said. However, as he got back to the deck, and Usopp was finishing up putting the mast back up, they spotted two things different here.

First off, Vivi and Mr. 9 were gone… and second, they spotted a Log Pose rolling around on the deck. "What's this thing?" Luffy said to himself as he picked it up. But Franky had moved over to examine Usopp's handiwork.

"Your hammer skills suck even back here," he said, "What? Just iron plates? Those won't last! You gotta…"

"Hey! I get it!" Usopp snapped, "I know! I'm not a shipwright! I work with gadgets and things like that! Not building ships! But hey, I like to think that I did a good job! They lasted until we got all the way to Water 7 didn't it?!"

But as soon as he said 'Water 7' he suddenly had a horrible reminder that they were sure to see that as well. He felt himself going pale and was now looking around desperately. He hoped that they would find that blob monster again before those memories… he did NOT want to see how stupid he had been there.

But then they heard past Nami screaming and the noise startled Laboon so that he dove under the water.

"You mind?!" Luffy yelled back as Sanji and Usopp climbed up to talk with her—Sanji bearing plates of food, "Keep it down!"

"You idiots!" Nami's voice yelled, "The compass is broken!"

Looking surprised, Luffy put the Log Pose into his pocket and they followed him up so that they were sitting at a small table outside the lighthouse with the other three already gathered around it. Nami was there with the map and her compass in front of her, the little needle was spinning around and round… never stopping. "The needle just spins! It won't stop!" she told them all.

As they all talked amongst themselves about it; Crocus, who had been standing close by, turned to look at them. "It is sadly apparent that none of you possess the slightest knowledge to how things work here," he said, "Did you all come here to die?"

"Harsh way to put it," Chopper gulped.

As they all looked to Crocus and he explained, with Sanji warning Luffy not to eat all the food, "There is nothing wrong with your compass. The Grand Line has little regards for the rules of the sea. Common sense is useless in this place."

"Out here on the sea, never doubt the Log Pose," Robin nodded in agreement, "This is the one unspoken law here in the Grand Line. Without it, we have no hope."

"The needle," past Nami asked slowly, "Why does it spin?"

And so Crocus told them the reason why normal compasses don't work on the Grand Line was because of the nature of the island's magnetic fields. In order to navigate the Grand Line, a special compass called a 'Log Pose' must be used. The Log Pose works by locking on to one island's magnetic field and then locking on to another island's magnetic field. Luffy pulled out the Log Pose that he found earlier and Nami ended up punching him for not telling them about it. He argued back that he found it on deck and assumed that those two must've dropped it when they escaped as Nami took it from him. Crocus then finished up his explanation by telling them that there were a total of seven different routes that diverge from Reverse Mountain and travel east before merging again to the last island… Raftel. An island that's existence was only confirmed by Roger himself.

"Raftel…" memory Nami repeated softly.

"That's it!" past Usopp yelled excitedly, a big grin on his face. "That _must_ be where the One Piece is hidden!"

Robin smiled a little as well as she wondered if the one thing that she had searched for her whole life… where her dream—the Rio Poneglyph—was also there as well. She knew that it had to exist… but the question of where to find it was the main problem.

"That's the most promising theory," Crocus said, "But no one has been able to set foot on Raftel Island since then."

"He would know better than anyone!" Franky smirked. "He was there."

"I'm sure that Luffy was glad that Crocus didn't tell us that," Nami told him, remembering to when Luffy angrily told Usopp off for asking Rayleigh if the One Piece existed or not.

"If you have to cheat to get to the top, where's the satisfaction?" Zoro asked calmly.

Luffy, who was chewing on some of the bones of the meal, grinned, "Don't worry. We'll know soon enough." Crocus was looking at him with new surprise as Luffy finished the food and everyone began yelling at him for not leaving anything for them. Past Sanji, especially, was furious and beat him up for it… however ended up breaking the Log Pose in the process.

"Well, that didn't last long," Robin stated as Nami kicked both men into the sea, screaming that she was going to kill them if they didn't get out of her face. The memory faded as soon as they watched the two hit the waves.

"You're scary…" Franky gulped. Damn… Nami may not be as strong as most members of the crew, but she didn't need to be to scare them all.

"Well, they broke it," Nami told him hotly.

"I'm surprised that it did break that easily," Robin stated as she looked to the new Log that Nami was wearing. "They're built to last out here on the sea. But Sanji broke it with little effort."

"Not made very well," Franky told her firmly. "Those don't last long. You need a really good, reliable one."

"What happened?" Chopper asked, looking to Nami, "You did get a new one didn't you?"

"Of course," Nami answered, "Crocus had one and he gave it to us as a thank you for helping Laboon."

"That was so kind of him," Brook said, now sounding more upbeat than before. "I guess it was a good thing that it broke then. Better to have one from him than a cheap one that could break out at sea?"

"That's for sure," Nami agreed as the next memory came up, "My anger with them faded when Crocus told us that he would give us his. But I did warn them that if they ever broke that one, I would kill them."

"Nami, you were just so beautiful when you were chewing us out," Sanji sighed and Zoro made a gagging sound behind him. They went back to watching the scene with Luffy sitting up on the table with Vivi and Mr. 9 on their knees.

"What's this?" Franky asked curiously.

"Well, after Laboon got us out of the water, he also brought up Vivi-chan and that 9 guy," Sanji explained. "Since they lost their Log Pose, they needed a ride back."

"Man," Zoro said, feeling a little let down. "You mean to tell me that I missed hearing them beg for mercy? Shame."

"Where were you anyway?" Robin asked curiously.

"He was sleeping," Usopp stated, and for some reason, he was sounding angry about it. But before they could ask him about that…

"Whiskey Peak?" repeated Luffy in puzzlement, "Huh, that's a funny name."

"Maybe, but sounds like one hell of a place," Franky laughed, sounds like his kind of place to visit.

"So what it is?" past Usopp asked.

"It's where we live!" Mr. 9 snapped, before he added more respectfully, "Sir…"

As Nami asked them what happened to their ship, Vivi answered nervously that it was destroyed.

"How did that happen?" Franky asked in surprise and scratched his head. Really, this part of the Grand Line is tame… how could it have been destroyed?

"Asking us for a ride is pushing it Mr. 9," Nami said slyly, "Especially after you tried to kill the whale!"

"I agree!" Brook stated, "But I rather that they went with you and away from Laboon! If you had left them there, they might've tried to kill him. I'm sorry for saying this but…"

"Don't be," Nami stated in understanding, "We all understand. And I think that Luffy might've felt the same way because he did end up agreeing."

But when they tried to get some real answers out of them, the two refused to answer. Vivi and Mr. 9 were now begging, telling them that they couldn't tell them anything, because of their line of business. They told them that the only thing they wanted was to just get home.

"We have confidence in your character, can't you grant us the same courtesy?" Vivi asked.

"People who dress like that doesn't deserve it," Franky said darkly, looking at them. It was funny, considering that these two were singing a different tune earlier.

"Please, we're begging you, show some mercy!" Mr. 9 added.

"Don't do it," Crocus advised them at once, "These two fools are dishonest to the core! They can't be trusted!"

"I have to admit that Vivi did a good job of spying on Baroque Works for as long as she did," Robin admitted.

"She does play the 'bad girl' thing decently," Nami agreed as her past self held up the broken Log Pose still on her wrist and told them that they didn't have another one and asked if they still wanted to ride with them.

The reaction was hilarious as they began yelling at her for trying to trick them. But Nami merely smiled devilishly and said in a fake innocent voice that fooled no one, "Oh, sorry! I forgot! Crocus gave us his so…!"

And as soon as they heard that, they got back to their knees and began begging for pity again.

"That was mean," Chopper said, but they were all amused by how Nami handled it. Mr. 9's face was twitching horribly, as if he was biting back what he really wanted to say. But to their surprise, Luffy said that it was alright for them to ride with them.

"Why?" past Usopp demanded, pointing an accusing finger at them, "These two are obviously pretty shady characters! Why would we take them anywhere?!"

"It's fine," Luffy repeated, "Don't sweat the small stuff. It'll be alright."

"Choose your route carefully," Crocus warned him seriously from behind him, "Once you head out from here, you'll be committed to that course."

"It's ok!" Luffy said happily. "If we don't like it, we'll try a different route next time."

"Good point," Sanji stated, still puffing on his cigarette. "Once we reach the end of the Grand Line, we'll have to find something else to do with our time and we can start again by going another route."

"That would be cool!" Chopper agreed happily as Crocus smiled at Luffy's words.

"Okay, it's time we get going!" Luffy declared as he jumped to his feet and looked to the rest of his crew, "Now that me and Laboon have an understanding, I can leave with a clear conscious!"

"Just who in the world do you think you are anyway?" Vivi asked as Luffy stretched out his stiff body.

"What's that? Me?" Luffy asked looking back at her before he said confidently, "Well, _I'm_ the man who'll be King of the Pirates!"

Crocus smiled widely at that, as if remembering something from a long time ago. But Vivi and Mr. 9 covered their mouths as they fought back the laughs.

"You think that they would be a little bit more grateful," Brook said, wondering just how this girl became an honorary Straw Hat. "You didn't have to take them anywhere, but they are laughing about it."

"We're not that shallow to stop what we're going to do just because a couple people laughed," Zoro said, "Let them laugh… we'll see who's laughing when we get there in the end."

Brook stopped at that and sighed. "I'm sorry… I guess I still hold some bitter feelings towards them."

"Don't worry about it," Sanji told him. "I'm sure that you'll become as fond as Vivi-chan as we are."

Brook nodded hopefully as the sun was now setting and they all climbed onboard the repaired ship with Crocus letting them know that their Log should be pointing directly to Whiskey Peak and they finished saying their goodbyes.

Luffy looked to Laboon. "I'm off, Laboon!" he said, "Be ready to fight when I get back!"

Laboon gave a surprisingly soft, almost purring sound as the ship pulled away. "Next stop?" Luffy cried out, "Whiskey Peak! Ready gang? Let's set sail!"

They all cheered as Laboon let out noises of farewell, the crew waving goodbye to him and Crocus. Brook waved off at Laboon as well, though he knew that there wasn't a point. "Just a little longer, Laboon!" he cried out, his own feelings of hope rising considerably as he waved, "I promise that I'll be there soon! Wait for me just a little bit longer!"

He dreamt of returning and seeing that baby whale almost every day for fifty years. It was his reason to keep on fighting no matter how hard it was… to see that smiling face once again. At least inside his dreams he can return to that time they spent together.

When the memory faded there, and they were back in the outside world again, Brook sighed and looked to them. "I guess I better explain what really happened," he said, "I don't want you all to think that they left the Grand Line because they were cowards. I think you need to know what happened to the Rumbar Pirates."

"Brook," Robin said at once, knowing better than anyone how it felt to ask about questions of your past and not like to answer, "You don't have to…"

"I know I don't have to," he said firmly, "But I feel that I must do this. So please listen to me." Brook hesitated for a moment before he gulped hard and came right out and told them all that when he first joined the Rumbar Pirates; how it was because he truly admired and was good friends with Captain Yorki. He was a man that he, and the rest of their crew, would've given their lives for. In fact, the whole crew was like one big family—they all looked out for each other and did their best to keep each other's spirits up when times got rough.

They all traveled across the Grand Line and experienced all the challenges the sea had to offer; despite the many difficulties, they simply sang along while continuing. However, disaster struck the crew one day. Captain Yorki had caught an incurable disease while disembarking on one of the islands they had passed. It was highly contagious, and ten other crew members besides the captain had already fallen prey to it once they discovered it.

To keep it from spreading to the rest of the crew who weren't infected, Yorki decided to take himself and the other sick members on the Rumbar Pirates' first ship and try to escape the Grand Line by going through the Calm Belt.

Brook told them that he remembered his first captain's words very clearly and informed them how deeply his old captain regretted that it was the only way to save them. Seeing as he could not return back to Laboon, Yorki asked Brook and the rest of the crew to give his regards to him when they reached him. He then made Brook the next captain and told him to get a new ship before they sent him off with his favorite song. After that, Brook and the remaining Rumbar Pirates continued on their journey until their deaths in the Devil's Sea where they had all been wiped out by an incredibly strong foe.

"So it was the _only_ way to save the rest of the crew?" Zoro asked him as Brook nodded, his sleeve over his eyes. "None of us wanted to… it hurt us all so badly! Captain Yorki was a man that we would've gone to the ends of hell for. But there was nothing that we could do about this! I can't tell you how sick at the heart it was to send the ship off and watch it disappear into the Calm Belt. But Captain Yorki did the only thing he could to protect us."

"Do you know if they made it through the Calm Belt?" Robin asked, but she already had a very good idea to what happened.

"No, I don't," he confessed as he sniffled. "I tried to find out during these last two years… but I never found anything. I would like to think that they did make it, but given how sick they all were…? And even healthy people trapped in the Calm Belt wouldn't stand much of a chance! I can't help but think the worse!"

"He was a real captain then," Sanji said softly as Franky began to cry loudly at that. "He made the right choice… even if it was a hard decision, it did end up protecting the other crewmates. He did what he knew was best for everyone."

Brook nodded as he got back to his feet. "I know," he confessed, "I know that it was all for the best… but still… he was my captain! A man who was also a dear friend! Thinking about how we were forced to leave him behind…?"

"You were just following his orders," Zoro reminded him. "A captain's orders are absolute. If you went against it, even more people would've become sick and died… and not only that, but you would've disrespected him as your captain."

Brook could only nod. He knew that was the case. But still… it still made him feel close to weeping at the memory of continuing on without him. He breathed deeply and dried his tears. Thanks to that decision, it kept him alive all this time after all… and he had a mission to complete! He promised Laboon that he would find him and meet up with him again no matter what it took! If he couldn't deliver the Rumbar Pirate's final song to him, then he would never be able to face his crew in the next life. It was the only thing that kept him going all these years.

He wiped the tears away, wishing that they could have Luffy back so that he could thank him. He didn't know how he could ever thank these people enough for all they've done for Laboon, but he hoped that he could repay them all someday.

The next memory was a little bit of a surprise… they were on the Merry with a thick layer of snow on deck. Sanji was shoveling it all off—but each shovelfull that he threw overboard was replaced quickly as the snow continued to fall. Luffy and Usopp meanwhile were fighting over snowmen when they heard Nami screaming in horror from inside the cabin.

"What's wrong?" past Usopp yelled as he and Luffy were stopped in the middle of their snowball fight.

"Sounds mad!" Luffy said knowingly as past Sanji declared that he would save Nami from whatever the problem was. Memory Nami, dressed in a warm coat, came out of the cabin, staring at the Log Pose in horror.

"What's wrong?" Chopper asked worriedly. Did they break another Log?

"No way!" memory Nami screamed before she cried out, "Make a hard turn 180 degrees, hurry!"

"A one eighty?" past Usopp repeated, baffled as he dropped his handful of snow, "Why would you want us to turn back?!"

"Did you forget something?" Luffy asked curiously.

"The ship has turned around! We're sailing in the wrong direction!" she yelled at them, still looking at the Log Pose. "I only took my eyes off the Log Pose for a second!" she looked up at the sky and said, "I thought the waves were calm!"

"I still don't get how that happened," Usopp stated. "I mean, as far as I knew, we were sailing straight ahead… but we all got turned around without ever noticing it?"

"This is why you should never doubt the Log Pose," Robin stated calmly. "Like Crocus said, common sense is useless here."

"I know that now," Nami stated, "But it took awhile to figure that out."

Just then, Vivi asked from inside the cabin in that same conceited way, "You're not a very good navigator are you?"

"I was so close to throwing them overboard for that," Nami hissed. She had forgotten what a spoiled brat Vivi was when she was Miss Wednesday.

"You can't trust anything here. Not the wind, sky, waves, clouds… nothing is what it seems in the sea. The only way to get reliable direction on the Grand Line is with the Log Pose. Everyone knows that," Vivi finished with a satisfied smirk.

"Yeah, everyone who is in the Grand Line," Usopp stated darkly, "But we're from the East Blue and have no idea to how things worked."

But Vivi had finally gone too far and Nami kicked her and her partner outside. "SHUT YOUR CONDENSATING MOUTHS AND DO SOMETHING USEFUL AROUND HERE!" she screamed as she took charge. "Brace the yard! Force the wind starboard! Turn the ship one hundred and eighty degrees to the left! Usopp man the lateen sails! Sanji take the helm!" when they went running off she then barked orders at the two, "WORK YOU TWO!"

"This girl's crazy!" Mr. 9 stated as they began pulling ropes.

"I often thought that," Zoro stated as he looked around. "Strange that I don't remember any of this…?"

Usopp gave him a slap on the side of the head and pointed to where his past self was sleeping against the side of the boat, covered in snow. "I still don't get how you could've possibly slept through all that!" he snapped at him.

"Oh, is that what happened?" Zoro said in an understanding tone. "That explains it."

"I'm still going to kill you for that," Nami hissed at him threateningly, "What kind of first rate idiot sleeps through a freaking nightmare like that?!"

"Hey wait! Looks like the wind changed!" past Usopp yelled, getting their attention, and he was right. It changed rapidly from freezing cold to a springtime gale.

And that was how it went. The winds would constantly change, waves would become violent or calm when you least expect it, once they almost hit an iceberg as a fog came pouring in. Although they had managed to turn just in time, the helm was damaged and Usopp went off to fix the leak. Dark clouds came pouring in and they were battling the fierce wind right after that as Sanji was forced to keep bringing food for them to keep their strength up… the winds were tearing the sails apart and water was filling the bottom of the ship… it was chaos.

"Jeez, and this is only your first journey?" Franky asked as the waves almost ended up capsizing the boat. "This is crazy!"

"Not as crazy as that Maubeugemour Sea," Chopper disagreed. At least they didn't have to worry about giant raindrops or the sea splitting here.

"I guess so," Nami laughed. To be honest, it was a bit nostalgic sailing the Maubeugemour Sea because it reminded her so much of this first journey. Thankfully, the horrible weather had finally calmed down enough that they could all rest on deck—trying to catch their breath. But true to form, Zoro had finally woken up and was telling them all that they shouldn't be so lazy just because the weather was nice. He didn't notice the evil eyes that Nami, Sanji, and Usopp were giving him as he finally noticed the two newcomers on deck. He went on to ask what they were doing there and Luffy explained the whole thing about taking him home.

Grinning evilly, Zoro bent down to look at them. "So tell me… what are your strange names again? Cause I don't think you two can be trusted."

"Why is it that smirk scares me out of my mind?" Usopp hissed. Really, that evil grin looked like a shark before it devoured its prey. The other two seemed scare of it as well as they stuttered out their names.

"I… my name is Mr. 9," Mr. 9 croaked out.

"I'm called Miss Wednesday," Vivi added nervously, her eyes twitching a little fearfully.

"Right," Zoro said skeptically, his thumb under his chin, "You know those names sound familiar and that's what's bothering me. In fact, the more I think about the more I'm sure I've heard them somewhere before!"

The two were looking terrified just as Nami hit Zoro over the head from behind and began to tell him that he was lucky that they didn't throw him overboard for sleeping when they did all the work. But as he glared back, looking ready to tell her off, she hit him three times over the head so that he was on the deck defeated, nursing his wounds.

"I take it back, she scares me more than anything," Usopp gulped as Chopper hid behind him and nodded firmly in agreement.

"Well, you can see now that you deserved it!" Nami snapped at Zoro, who remembered those wounds painfully well.

But memory Nami stood up in front of them all and declared, "Listen up everyone! There's no way to know what's gonna happen next! During the terror that _most_ of us just experienced…" she shot Zoro another evil look before continuing, "I came to an understanding why this sea was named the Grand Line." She held up her fist and finished, "My navigation skills are useless here! Anything can happen! But mark my words I will guild us through!"

"And you've done amazing, Nami!" current Sanji sighed lovingly and she smiled proudly.

"Once you get the hang of it, it's easy," she said confidently as her past self and Usopp talked briefly as she then pointed through the mist and yelled out, "We're here! Our first journey on the Grand Line comes to an end!"

And through the thick mist, they could see the outlines strange, cactus-shaped mountains with several buildings set up on either side of the river that they were travelling on.

"So this was your first stop?" Brook said interestedly. "I ended up taking a different route when we came to the Grand Line. It will be fascinating to see the places you've all seen!"

"Yeah, but this isn't a place that I remember too fondly," Nami confessed, remembering the trouble they got into here.

"What happened?" Franky asked curiously as Luffy was crying out in joy at the idea of visiting another island. As he and the rest of the crew talked in excited voices, Vivi and Mr. 9 both jumped to the railing.

"Now what are they doing?" current Zoro asked as they both said their thanks and goodbyes and chuckled darkly.

"Bye Bye baby," they finally finished speaking together before jumped overboard.

"Weirdo's both of them," Franky muttered and they all sweat-dropped as the others nodded with him.

"That was a quick exit," past Nami said.

"I guess we'll never learn what those nutjobs are up to," memory Usopp added darkly, looking over the edge to try and see where they went.

"Oh, we found out very quickly," current Zoro sighed, remembering what happened that night.

"Who cares?" Luffy asked, turning back to the matter at hand, "We're landing!" And that was where the memory faded.

"So, this Vivi-san is actually a princess?" Brook asked in surprise. "One would never guess it with how she acts. And why is she calling herself Miss Wednesday?"

"Well, to be honest, some the royalty I've seen are arrogant like that," Robin answered, remembering seeing all the things that nobles had been able to get away with over the years because they were rich. "But Vivi was only pretending so that she could spy on us."

"Us?" Brook repeated in confusion.

"Yeah, Robin here used to be our enemy," Zoro informed him, jerking his thumb at her. "She was the vice-president of a crime origination that tried to take over Alabasta."

"WHAT?!" Franky and Brook both said in amazement.

"I can't say that I'm proud of it," Robin stated, "But at the time, I needed protection."

"Protection from who?" asked Brook, looking at her in a new light.

But she merely shook her head as the new memory appeared. They were standing in the same town they had gotten a glimpse of before, only now it was the middle of the night and a bright moon shone above them. Bright enough for them to see by, but also casting dark shadows from the nearby buildings.

However, at the moment, those buildings were mostly destroyed… there was rubble and broken boards cast every few feet along with giant shards of broken glass and the walls around them looked close to crumbling away.

"Where are we?" Chopper asked, looking around at the destruction in surprise, "Is this Whiskey Peak?"

"This isn't the Whiskey Peak that I saw," Usopp said in surprise, staring around at the mostly destroyed town. "What happened? Looks like a tornado came through here."

"Well, you were sleeping through all the action I seem to recall," Nami sighed. "This whole town was inhabited by bounty hunters working for Baroque Works. The citizens here fooled pirates into thinking that they are kind and hospitable and proceed to throw a party for them, only to turn them in and steal everything from their ship when the pirates pass out."

"It was original, I'll give them that," Zoro confessed unconcerned.

"And I guess that you all fell for that?" Franky asked knowingly.

"They threw a party for us," Usopp said, sounding embarrassed. "And… I guess we drank a little too much."

"Well, I was up," Zoro stated, "And I was stuck doing all the hard work while you were sleeping. And you say that I don't pull my weight."

Sanji gave him a nasty look—wishing that he had woken up in time to show him up. So what if he took down all those bounty hunters? He could've done all that in half the time!

"I was up too," Nami retorted. "Don't think you're special. I was looking for their treasure… but they hardly had anything good here. What a waste of time."

"You think that they would at least keep the town in better shape than this," Brook said, looking around.

"No," Zoro stated, recognizing the damage. "Me and Luffy did that."

"Oh, so Luffy was up fighting too?" Chopper asked curiously.

"Ah, yeah… in a matter of speaking," Zoro said with a sigh, really not looking forward to seeing all this.

"I also recall that Baroque Works tried to offer you a position with us," Robin added, looking over at Zoro. "But your interview didn't end well?"

Zoro smirked evilly. "I remember. I think it was some guy name Mr. 7 who asked me. I said I'd join them if they made me their boss. When he didn't take that well, he attacked me so I put him in his place."

"That is harsh and cool at the same time," Franky said, thinking that over.

"And scary," Usopp added darkly. But just then there was the sound of explosions as walls on either side of the road broke apart and he screamed in shock with some of the other Straw Hats. Luffy and Zoro—bloodlust in both their eyes—came bursting through and were going at each other.

"Well," Sanji said in mild surprise, "Didn't see that coming."

"What's happening?!" screamed Chopper in shock. "Why are you and Luffy fighting?!"

Zoro sighed. "Kinda a long story. And a stupid one… that rubber idiot wanted to fight me for beating about a hundred bounty hunters."

"He was angry that you took out bounty hunters?" Usopp yelled as the two past versions were at each other's throats, making so much noise that they were having a hard time hearing him.

"He thought that I was attacking our hosts for no reason," Zoro said, rolling his eye, "Wanted to fight me over it."

"Wow, so this is the first time you two ever really went at it?" Robin asked as she watched the battle with great interest. "Blades are Luffy's weakness with his Devil Fruit powers…? But he's so unpredictable that it would be hard for you to hold up against him for long."

"I say we put a few bids on this," Sanji stated, looking at Franky and making bets. "I got a thousand beri's on Luffy for kicking your ass Moss Head."

"Say that again!" Zoro snapped as Franky whistled at it. "If you two weren't trying to kill each other, I'd think that you were enjoying it."

He folded his arms. "Well, it's always nice to fight someone and not have to worry about holding back," he admitted, "But this is so stupid…"

Zoro looked away, his eye watching the fight. Why did it go down like this? He never gave it much thought before, but looking at it now…? For some reason, it bothered him. Was it possible that Luffy didn't trust him here? Was that why he picked a fight like this? He remembered the memories of seeing Luffy threaten to hurt Johnny when he told them that Nami killed Usopp… but here, Luffy went right after him without giving him a chance to explain.

"Hard to say what goes on in Luffy's mind," Robin told him quietly, and he glanced over at him. She smiled a little as she said, "But I don't think that you need to be worried about Luffy not trusting you."

He looked to her and she explained, "You used to be a pirate hunter after all, and you weren't new to killing."

"Well, how come he didn't believe that Nami killed Usopp before?" he asked her curiously. "Johnny told him what he thought he saw, but Luffy never once doubted her."

"Hard to say, but do you remember what Nami said before when she refused to kill Luffy when he was in that cage thanks to Buggy?" she asked. "She said that _'Pirates took the life of someone dear to me, I'll never be one of them'._"

"So?" he asked, "What's your point?"

"She ended up risking her life protecting him when she didn't have to," she answered softly. "I think that Luffy remembered what she said very well. And when she went against Buggy like that, I think it only proved her words. However… when he heard that she had killed Usopp… it didn't add up. The same person who had refused to kill a complete stranger would go around and kill a friend like she was no better than some pirate? I don't think that Luffy could understand that."

Zoro thought that over for a moment as she finished, "But this all happened long ago. You two trust each other completely now right? But if it bothers you that much, I'm sure that you can ask him yourself after we find him."

"Hmm," was all Zoro said. "Fair enough. I guess it really doesn't matter anymore. Though it bugs me…"

"Hopefully, the next time you two fight, it will be more light-hearted than this," she answered just as she noticed something moving at the corner of her eyes. Two figures were pulling themselves out of some of the rubble—a man and woman. The woman had short blond hair was wearing a yellow dress with a lemon-like pattern and with two lemon earrings dangling from her ears. The man with her was a tall, dark-skinned man with black hair in short spiky dreadlocks. He also wore a brown trench coat with the number 5 printed on along with dark sunglasses.

"Who are they?" Chopper asked, looking at them

"That would be Mr. 5 and his partner Miss Valentine's. Two of Baroque Works agents," Robin answered. She personally, never liked them.

"Wow! Miss Valentine's? She's gorgeous!" Sanji said, before he realized that she was hurt. "Hey! What did you two do to her Moss-Head?!"

"She was trying to kill Vivi so we took her out?" he offered as he jerked his thumb down the street to where Vivi was, riding a duck that size of a horse. She looked different from before—she looked a little beat up as well and her long hair was let down… but she was still staring at Zoro and Luffy with terror on her face.

"More members of this Baroque Works?" asked Brook, "But what exactly is it?"

"If they don't mention it soon, I'll explain it," Robin promised as they watched the two get up. They were both beat up, covered in bruises and cuts all over their faces; looking at them, they didn't have to think hard to what must've happened.

"I guess this is what happens when you step right into the line of fire," Franky said, looking back at the two still going at it.

"They weren't strong at all," Zoro said in annoyance as the two went charging at them, convinced that they could win. But they picked the wrong people to fight.

"You can't beat us!" Mr. 5 yelled. "Prepare to die at the hands of Baroque Works officer agents!"

Both Luffy and Zoro stopped their fight and glared murderously at the agents, stopping them all dead in their tracks. Even some of the Straw Hats froze at that… the two looked truly terrifying. Their faces were covered in bloody scratches, while their eyes were devoid of any sympathy or benevolence. There was nothing but cold rage that was so strong that they could all feel chills going up their spines.

"Shut up and go away!" they both yelled, raising their fists. "You're interfering…" and together they sent the two flying with such force that the Straw Hats all felt sympathy for the two poor fools. "WITH OUR FIGHT!" the two finished screaming out—a trace of evil flashing there.

Robin sighed as she watched her former colleges crashing into the side of the buildings until they were both out cold for good this time.

"They didn't have to go that far did they?" Usopp whispered tearfully.

"When those two gang up, it makes me feel really bad for our enemies," Nami croaked out, looking at Sanji. "It's almost as bad as when all three of you monsters gang up!"

"DAMN IT MOSS HEAD!" Sanji yelled at Zoro, "WHAT WERE YOU TWO THINKING ATTACKING A LADY?!"

"I don't see you doing any better," Zoro snarled back as his past self grumbled to himself, "Damn pests…"

"Messing with our fight," Luffy growled in agreement as Vivi was staring at them in amazement as they both went back to glaring at each other.

Zoro glared at Luffy, now looking completely insane here. "Shall we… continue?" he demanded.

"Yeah," Luffy snapped back, looking just as demented as Zoro at that moment.

"Come on guys!" Chopper yelled out, "Please stop fighting! You're supposed to be friends!"

But as the two moved in for another round, their muscles bulging and the energy they were releasing seemed to bend the air itself as they clashed like sparks between them. However, before these two powerhouses could collide, Nami appeared out of nowhere and punched them both so hard in the faces that they were sent flying—knocked right out of their frenzy mode.

Brook, Chopper and Usopp screamed in terror.

"How can she take them both out with a single punch each?" Usopp demanded.

"Though we always knew it, Nami is the one who's really in charge here," Robin chuckled.

"I guess it takes someone as amazing as you, Nami-swan to handle those two idiots," Sanji cooed at her as Zoro rubbed his hair in an irritated way.

"You two, what the heck do you think you're doing here!?" Nami yelled at them both as they lay there—looking stunned at what just hit them. "It's lucky for you that you managed to keep the girl safe! You almost lost us a billion beri's!" She picked them both up by the scruffs of their necks, like how a babysitter would to two brothers who just didn't want to get along and yelled, "You understand?"

"A billion beri's?" Franky whistled, "Where'd you come up with that?"

"She's a princess isn't she?" Nami asked, "I made a deal with her bodyguard to protect her for a billion beri's."

"I doubt even a princess has that kind of money stored away," Robin answered, knowing that Alabasta's funds had dropped drastically during those three years of no rain. And even if they weren't in the middle of a civil war, she doubted that anyone other than the Celestial Dragons could come up with that kind of money on the spot.

Vivi was staring at her, not understanding what she was talking about, as Luffy and Zoro were continuing to fight by pulling each other's faces and small punches like little kids.

"What do you mean?" Vivi asked anxiously, "What beri's? I don't understand! Why did you save me?"

As the two continued to fight where they hung in Nami's grasp, Nami smiled and said to her, "About that, I think we need to have a little chat. You see you and I have to work out a contract for a reward!" She frowned at the two before she finally slammed them into the ground to stop them fighting for good. "KNOCK IT OFF!" she screamed.

"Owww…" Franky winced, having been on the receiving end of one of Nami's punches and knew the pain they were in. The memory soon faded and they were back in the open air.

"So… her bodyguard asked you to protect her?" Brook asked.

Nami sighed regretfully. "Mr. 8—or rather Igaram—had been with Vivi ever since she left home to find out about Baroque Works, but he didn't stand a chance against Mr. 5 and Miss Valentine's."

"You mean those two that Luffy and Zoro took out just by glaring?" Franky asked, remembering the horrible look in their eyes. And it was true… just a glare from them was enough to stop them in their tracks. "I wouldn't have wanted to be in their shoes."

"Didn't stand a chance," Nami stated, "And well, he begged us to protect her for him."

Zoro glared at her. How was it that he was the one forced to do it? Because she loaned him some money, and didn't even spend it for his swords? God, he knew that there was no way that he still owed her anything anymore.

The memory came back just then, and they were in the alley with the trio and Vivi. Luffy was sitting up on a barrel and was laughing his head off. "Oh!" he said in new understanding, "They were all bounty hunters?! Why didn't you just say so, Zoro?!"

"I did! Like twelve times!" Zoro yelled back furiously at him.

Zoro rolled his eye again. What an idiot…

"What a funny mix up!" Luffy laughed before Nami snarled at them to shut up, which they did at once.

"I guess they didn't want to get hit again," Robin offered brightly.

"Would you drop it?" Zoro demanded as Nami turned to Vivi and offered to take her home for one billion beri's.

"No, I can't!" Vivi said sharply and Nami blinked in surprise. "But I appreciate the help you've given me so far."

"Why not?" Nami demanded at once, "You're a princess aren't you? So aren't you rich?"

"Just because you have the title doesn't necessary make you rich, Nami-san," Brook stated.

"Yeah, but I would've thought that she have some money," Nami sighed.

"Do you know much about Alabasta Kingdom?" Vivi asked sadly. And so she went into details about her home and how they were now in the middle of a civil war. The people are revolting and the entire kingdom was on the verge of self-destructing so she had decided to take matters into her own hands when she discovered that someone was now behind this war. So she and her companion Igaram infiltrated Baroque Works to find out who was behind it all for the last two years.

"You've got some guts considering you're a princess," Zoro said in an impressed tone, "So… were you able to find out what their plan was?"

She nodded just as Nami answered, "To create an ideal nation." Vivi looked up at her in surprise and she explained, "Anyway, that's what Igaram said it was. Is that what you found out?"

Vivi looked back down at her knees and admitted, "It's not. That was only a cover story the boss was using. It's a lie to cover their tracks!" Her eyes darkened and she finished, "Their true goal is to take over Alabasta Kingdom!" They all just looked at her as she said that she now had to get back home and warn everyone what was really happening before it was too late.

She looked ready to cry and Nami sighed. "Ok, I get it," she said in annoyance, "I see how it is. Yeah, it's all starting to make sense now. I suppose you wouldn't have much money laying around during a civil war."

"But who's behind it all?" Brook asked. He remembered reading the voyage journal on the Sunny once, but he couldn't remember just who it was…?

"Hey," Luffy said eagerly, and Brook was glad that he asked this question, "So did you find out who's in charge?"

Vivi looked horrified at the suggestion. "WHAT?!" she screamed, causing everyone to become startled at her sudden change in tone, "THE BOSS'S IDENITY?! YOU SHOULDN'T ASK THAT!"

"But you know don't you?" Luffy asked calmly.

"ASK ME ANYTHING BUT THAT!" she yelled, waving her hands around, "IF I TELL YOU, YOUR LIVES WILL BE IN DANGER TOO!"

"Drama Queen," current Zoro whispered to himself. Despite her not wanting to tell them anything, she went and blurted out the name anyway.

"Yeah, I'll pass!" past Nami added with a nervous laugh, clearly letting them know that she was happy not knowing. "This guy is trying to take over an entire country after all! I wouldn't want someone like that chasing after me, thank you."

"No, you don't!" Vivi said loudly, "I don't care how strong you people are, you wouldn't stand a chance against one of the Warlords of the Sea! Against Crocodile!"

Silence…

"Did she just blurt his name out?" Franky asked with a deadpanned expression.

"Pretty much," Zoro confessed.

"That's right!" Brook yelled, smacking his skull with the boney hand. "That's the name! I couldn't remember who it was. Is he really a Warlord?"

"_Was_ a Warlord," Sanji told him, "We put the kibosh on his plans."

"Who now?" Luffy asked, and Vivi turned white as she realized what she said and covered her mouth when Nami's jaw fell open in horror.

"How was she able to stay a spy for two years and then just declare who she was and who was behind it to a bunch of strangers?" Nami sighed.

"You had to say it," past Zoro said darkly before they felt like they were being watched. They looked up and they saw a strange sight… there was an otter in a white one piece cloth with purple polka dots and a vulture with a flowered swimcap—both with thick sunglasses. They all looked up at the duo for a moment before the otter jumped up on the vulture's back and they took off.

"What were those guys?" Chopper asked.

"The unluckies," Robin told him, "Mr. 13 and Miss Friday… they served as Crocodile's messengers and were also in charge of executing any Baroque Works agents that fail their missions."

"He trusted those things to do that?" Usopp asked, his eyebrows raised. Past Nami then grabbed hold of Vivi's front and began to shake her as she screamed at her, with Vivi telling her how sorry she was. The men on the other hand were looking excited at the thought.

"Hey, a Warlord?! That's cool!" Luffy yelled out, his eyes shining.

"Not too bad," Zoro agreed.

"Of course you would think that's awesome!" Usopp yelled at Zoro. "That guy was beyond dangerous! It's a miracle that we survived going up against him!"

"Well, we did, so stop complaining about it," Zoro answered.

Luffy began to laugh wildly as Nami continued to yell at Vivi before she began to cry. "Being hunted by a Warlord in the Grand Line? That's more than I can handle!" she cried, covering her face.

"So when do we get to see this guy?" past Zoro asked conversationally.

"Why would you want to? That guy was pure evil," Sanji reminded him. He was still burning with rage at the reminder of this guy and what he had done to Vivi… any man who causes a woman such pain and sadness was no longer a man.

"I get it now," he said in annoyance. "This was before we met the guy."

"I wonder what he's like?!" Luffy added as Nami yelled out, "SHUT UP YOU!"

She then turned and began heading down the road. "It's been nice knowing you idiots! Thanks for everything!" she yelled at them.

"Where're you going!?" Luffy called after her.

"They don't know what I look like yet!" she yelled back, "I'm leaving!"

"You were really going to walk out on them?" Chopper asked her in surprise and she sighed.

"Oh, I didn't get far, believe me," she stated. And no sooner had she said that did the otter show up with three very detailed drawings of Luffy, Zoro, and Nami.

Nami clapped as she saw them, "Wow, that's so lifelike!" And that was when they took off, their silhouette against the bright moon. Nami turned back to them and yelled, "No use in leaving now!"

"That was just my luck," current Nami sighed, "Of course the otter was an artist!"

"Hey, that wasn't too bad! I wonder if he takes requests?" Usopp said, watching them flying out of sight.

"I'm really sorry," Vivi said again quietly but Luffy said that she'll get over it.

"Where's she planning on going anyway?" past Zoro asked, as a twisted grin appeared on his face, "Well then, it looks like the three of us will be sitting right on top of Baroque Works' hit list."

Luffy chuckled to himself, "That's so awesome!"

"How could you two be so excited about being on someone's hit list?" Usopp yelled out. "Man, you two have the same mindset!"

"But it is nice to see that you two made up so well after your fight," Robin stated, like how a mother would when her sons had apologized after an argument.

Zoro just shrugged. It was a shame that they hadn't had a match against each other since then, it was always nice to fight someone who was anything but a pushover. Nami however, was now sulking in a curled up ball on the ground with Vivi trying to think of something to say to cheer her up.

"I'm worried for you here, Nami," Robin said, looking at her almost comatose form.

"Being hunted by a Warlord would do that!" Nami said loudly.

"Well, now we're being hunted by an Emperor and you're taking that well," she reminded her and the 'Weakling Trio' all turned pale at the memory and looked ready to cry at that. How was it that just a few words from her could scare them all out of their minds?

"You have nothing to fear!" someone suddenly yelled.

The Straw Hats turned to see a fairly tall, muscular man standing there with three stuff dummies and stared intensely at the group of pirates. Though it was clear he was a man, he was dressed in clothes similar to Vivi's, and with thick tube-like hair had been done up in a ponytail, and even wearing lipstick…

"What…?" Brook said as Sanji's eyes began twitching horribly. Violent flashbacks of Okama's coming back to mind and he felt the need to bang his head against a wall or something so that he'd black out.

"Is that guy alright?" Chopper asked, vaguely recalling seeing him there… or was that his wife?

"I remember him," Robin stated, "That's Igaram. He is the Captain of the Royal Guard in Alabasta and was known as Mr. 8."

"Ah, so that's Mr. 8," Brook said, "My does he have a very strange fashion sense."

"It's…" Igaram coughed. He started to hum scales before he went on to say, "It's gonna be alright princess, I've come up with a plan!"

"I know I never met this guy, but he's… insane isn't he?" Franky asked as some of them laughed at his humming scales.

"Yeah, Vivi told me that was a habit of his," Nami laughed.

"Igaram!" Vivi exclaimed, coming over to him. "What are you…?"

"Men, should wear nothing but clothes made for men," Sanji hissed, a muscle standing out against his forehead. This just wasn't natural. Who in their right mind would believe him as Vivi here?

"That's a really funny outfit old guy," Luffy said as he looked over the outfit.

"An entire parade of idiots," past Nami whispered where she huddled.

"And I know I was right," current Nami agreed with herself.

"What is his plan?" Usopp asked, looking around, as if hoping that they could explain to him what was happening.

"He wanted to be a decoy for them," Robin answered, "By pretending to be Vivi and taking those dummies with him."

They all stared at her.

"What?" Franky cried out. "Who would ever believe that?!"

"I don't know," Chopper said, looking up at Igaram. "I think it's a really good disguise."

The rest of the Straw Hats behind him all had sweat-drop at those words. Sanji opened his mouth to tell him that there must be something wrong with his eyes, but Zoro shook his head at him, knowing that there wasn't any point trying to tell him otherwise. They let it drop as Igaram began to tell them his plan. Since Baroque Works had learned who Vivi really was, agents would be sent after her to try and kill her. So he came up with the plan to disguise himself as her and try to draw their attention to give them time to escape.

"So these things are us?" Luffy asked as he poked one of the dummies.

"Yes, and those dummies are more convincing than Igaram here," Sanji stated darkly.

"A decoy…" past Zoro summed up for them.

"While Baroque Works is busy chasing after me," Igaram finished up. "The rest of you will head with Vivi straight for Alabasta Kingdom along a less direct route."

"Hold on! Just a second!" past Nami screamed, finally getting back to her feet. "Who said we were gonna take her with us?!" They looked to her and she finished, "We still haven't discussed the matter of payment."

"Payment for what?" Luffy asked as he stared at Vivi. "Take her where?"

"You think he would've picked up on what was going on here after all that?" Usopp stated in annoyance.

"Idiot has selective hearing," Sanji answered with a shrug.

"Where've you been, Luffy?" memory Zoro asked impatiently as he stood up and jerked his thumb to Igaram. "The old man here wants us to take the princess back home to her kingdom."

"Oh, is that what all this yelling is about?" Luffy said, getting it and Vivi looked to him in surprise as he finished by saying, "Sure thing."

Memory Nami completely lost her cool and screamed out, "CROCODILE MAY ALREADY BE AFTER US!"

"He was," Robin nodded. "He doesn't waste time, Crocodile."

"Is this Crocodile guy really that dangerous?" Luffy asked Igaram curiously. Igaram looked back and explained about how he was one of the Seven Warlords, and because of that, there wasn't a bounty on his head. However, once upon a time, his bounty had once been over eighty million. Though they knew that this was the highest bounty the memory Straw Hats encountered, the present-day ones knew that had been Crocodile's bounty _before_ it became frozen after becoming a Warlord. Bounties were no guarantee of power…

"EIGHTY MILLION? THAT'S FOUR TIMES ARLONG'S BOUNTY!" memory Nami screamed out, "THERE'S NO WAY!"

"Sure," Luffy answered with a confident smile as memory Nami looked like she was about to burst into tears again. "It sounds like it'll be fun."

"Of course that's his answer!" Sanji stated tiredly.

"Well, you might as well," Brook laughed, "Even if you had said no, they would've still come after you."

"Thanks for that, Brook," Nami told him darkly. "But you're right. Even if we had said no, that wouldn't stop them from trying to kill us since we knew about Crocodile's plan."

"We are forever grateful," Igaram said, and they could hear the gratitude in his voice as he lead them to a small ship and put the dummies on board before he turned back and spoke in a much higher voice, "Now then, I, Vivi, will leave from here."

"Come on?" Nami asked, shaking her head. It would've been better for him to go as himself with an extra dummy. That would've been more convincing.

Luffy began to laugh, "Great imitation old guy!"

"Imitation of who?" memory Zoro asked, looking at Igaram like he thought that he was insane. But Igaram didn't pay any attention to them as he asked Vivi for the Eternal Pose and she handed it over, looking like she was doing this against her will.

They could all see the sadness in her eyes; the truth was that she didn't want this, but there wasn't anything she could do about it. Nami looked at Vivi and realized that maybe it was because she thought that Igaram had died that became the reason that she would try to do everything on her own.

"What's an Eternal Pose?" her past self suddenly asked and Igaram looked at her in surprise.

"You've never heard of it?" he asked her.

"We only got to the Grand Line! How were we supposed to know how anything works here?" present-day Nami sighed irritably. "There was hardly any information about this place in the East Blue… so how can they be so surprised that we didn't know anything?"

"You can say it's sorta like a permanent version of the Log Pose," Igaram answered, holding up the little compass. It looked a great deal like the one Nami wore, only this one was made to look a little more like an hourglass shape with only one orb in the middle with needle floating inside it and the name Alabasta was printed on the top. "Whereas a Log Pose will always lead sailors to the next island on the course, an Eternal Pose will forever remember the magnetic energy of the island stored inside it. So it will always point to that island and no other. And this Eternal Pose is set to Alabasta Kingdom."

"And you're going to use this to set your course to home?" Vivi asked him worriedly.

"Princess Vivi, please take the indirect island hopping route to Alabasta," Igaram told her softly, silently letting her know that he knew the dangers, but he was ready to take them. "I have never gone that way myself, but you should only need to pass two or three island to get there." He turned his attention towards Luffy. "Please, take care of the princess in my absence."

"Yeah," Luffy said cheerfully.

"But of course!" Sanji cheered as well, his eyes turning to hearts at the memories of sailing with Vivi. "As long as this prince is here, I swore that no harm would come to sweet Vivi! She stole my heart, and I will do whatever it takes to…"

"Would you shut up?" Nami snapped at him in annoyance. Really, his stupid quotes of love were getting on her nerves.

"Igaram…" Vivi started to say something, but her words died on her lips, unable to come out and say what she really wanted.

"I expect that your journey will be a difficult one," he said with a gentle voice and an encouraging smile, "Please, be careful."

Vivi still didn't look happy about it, but she forced a smile and took his hand as they promised that they would see each other again soon. They watched as Igaram set sail, all of them saying goodbye. But before he got too far away, there was a bright light and, to their horror, the ship exploded apart. The blinding light and force of the shockwave created a great wind and blew back at them, everyone looking stunned.

The ship went up in flames, burning everything until there wasn't anything but a pile of burnt wood on the water. Only Zoro, Nami, and Robin looked on calmly, knowing what happened.

"What… what just happened?!" Franky yelled out, trying to make out Igaram through the wreckage, but not seeing anything.

"Wait, are we sure that's what happened?!" Usopp yelled, pointing at it, "I mean… that old, tube-hair guy survived didn't he?! We met him in Alabasta after we stopped the rebellion!"

"So he did survive?!" Brook called, sighing in relief. "That is good to hear. He was a good man."

"We all thought he was dead for a long time," Zoro explained, "We didn't think we'd ever see him again."

"Yeah, I can see why you thought he was pushing up daisies here," Sanji said, lighting up another cigarette, calming his nerves.

"They're already after us?!" past Nami exclaimed fearfully, once she got over the shock. "That's impossible!?"

Luffy said nothing as he turned around and walked over a few feet to where his hat, that had been blown off by the shockwave before, and put it back on his head. He let out a loud yell, and looked ready to charge. Now was the time that they had to hurry and leave before they were killed as well. Zoro was right behind him as he yelled at Nami about the Log.

She quickly checked and let him know that it was set, they could leave.

"Get the girl!" he yelled back as he turned back to run with Luffy, "Come on! Let's go!"

As Nami tried to pull Vivi away from the horrible sight, Zoro told Luffy that he'll get the ship ready and that he should get the other two.

"Right," Luffy answered, "I'm on it!"

All the Straw Hats had to run hard to keep up with him as he sprinted back down the street, to the building where they had been staying. He broke down the door in his haste and looked wildly around the room for the cook and sniper. It was clear that there had been a party here… the whole place was a mess, and the two were both passed out on the floor, snoring loudly. The present-day versions of Sanji and Usopp were both embarrassed by their appearance after everything that happened here, they didn't complain as they watched Luffy grab hold of past Usopp's nose and Sanji's leg, waking them up… but not soon enough…

"COME ON!" Luffy shouted as he ran out the door, which was only big enough for him, and so he pulled his two crewmates out through either side of the walls, both of them yelling in pain and confusion to what was going on.

"Why does he always grab me by the nose?" Usopp demanded with a grumble as they ran after them, the two being dragged along the ground like dolls.

"That all hurt," Sanji hissed as his past self was cursing at him to stop it and Usopp was screaming that his nose was gonna fall off.

"Well, we didn't have time to sit around and explain to you what was going on," Zoro informed him with a smirk. "That would've taken days for you to get."

"What? Don't you go there, don't even go there!" Sanji yelled as they continued running, and Luffy didn't stop until they reached where the ship was docked, and Zoro was just finishing up pulling up the anchor.

"Hey, I got them!" Luffy screamed up, holding them up.

"Bring 'em up! We're ready to go!" memory Zoro told him.

Luffy turned around to check and saw Usopp and Sanji were both out cold. "What? They're _still_ asleep?" He shrugged and dragged them onto the Going Merry.

"We weren't sleeping you idiot! You knocked us out!" Sanji yelled at him as Usopp rubbed his nose at the memory of the pain.

"Now that had to have been one heck of a wake-up call," Franky laughed, "And I thought Brook waking us all up with that stupid song every morning was bad."

Suddenly, they heard arguing and, they looked behind them to see that Nami brought Vivi here and she was yelling at her, "We don't have time to look for him!"

"I'm not just gonna leave him here!" Vivi yelled back.

"But listen!" Nami screamed, looking close to slapping her.

"What's the problem?" Chopper asked in confusion as past Zoro yelled the same question down at them.

"We couldn't find her duck," Nami sighed, "And she didn't want to leave without him."

"You mean that thing that's on board already?" Franky asked, pointing to the yellow duck in the ski cap that was walking around on deck.

"Apparently her duck's gone missing!" past Nami screamed up at him. "And now she's refusing to leave without him!"

"This duck?" he asked, pointing to the duck that was standing next to him.

"HE'S HERE?!" both women yelled in fury.

"Yeah, he was there when I climbed on board," Zoro stated.

"I'm surprised you were able to find it at all with your shitty sense of direction," Sanji said darkly.

"Just because you had to be dragged there doesn't mean that you need to tell me off," Zoro taunted him and Sanji looked ready to drop-kick him right there.

"Made it here before I did!" past Zoro informed them.

"I guess he's more chicken than duck," Franky said thoughtfully. With the knowledge that her duck was safe and sound, Vivi climbed up the ladder, while giving them all directions to the best way out of here. With the sails opening, the Straw Hats were more than happy to say goodbye to Whiskey Peak and sailed off into a thick fog.

As they got underway, Zoro turned to Vivi. "Hey?" he stated and she looked up in surprise.

"Mr. Bushido?" she asked.

Brook laughed a little at the name and Zoro frowned. "She never did get my name right," he stated, shaking his head. "But she got that crap cook's name right. I never got that."

"Do you want me to kill you?" Sanji demanded hotly as past Zoro asked how many people did she think that they were going to send after them. Vivi told them that there were at least two thousand loyal employees and several bases like this one set up in the area. As she told them that, Sanji and Usopp both came to and began screaming that they wanted to stay another night.

"How were we supposed to know what was going on?" Sanji demanded as they all looked to him and Usopp. "You try getting dragged across the ground like that and then we'll talk!"

"We should've just left them behind," past Zoro said irritably as Nami went and punched them both, shutting them up. "Nami?! Will you explain it to them?"

"I just did!" she answered.

"Okay that was fast," he said in surprise.

"I left out the complicated parts!" she added.

"Oh, you made your point very clear," Usopp whispered fearfully.

"She sure made you use your heads," Brook teased.

By this point, the first rays of light were starting to appear on the horizon and they were clear of the island, though they were now forced to sail very carefully through all the fog and avoid the rocks. One false move, and they could end up sinking right here.

"That would've sucked, dying out here after all that to get away from there," Franky commented.

"Finally, it's getting light out," past Nami sighed in relief.

"I'm just glad we got away from the people chasing us," Robin's voice said.

"That's for sure," memory Nami agreed.

"With all this fog, we'll need to be careful to avoid the rocks," Robin spoke again.

"Wow, how are you able to talk to them like that, Robin?" Chopper asked in amazement. But when he looked up at her, she had her eyes on something else, and as he followed her gaze, he gasped at who he saw.

"I'll take care of it!" past Nami shouted confidently before she realized that she didn't know who had spoken. She looked to Luffy and asked hesitantly, "Wait… did you…?"

Luffy looked at her in confusion, until they heard someone clear their throat behind them. And as everyone looked up they saw a very familiar figure sitting comfortably on the upper railings.

It was Robin…

"This ship is nice," she informed them casually, as if they were already old friends, and the memory selves all gasped at her. She tilted up her purple cowboy hat to look at them.

"Looks like we finally get to see you, Robin," Franky said in surprise. "Wow, that's an outfit."

"Is that really you, Robin?" Chopper asked. He was sure this was here, but at the same time, he didn't recognize her…

"That's the person I used to be," she answered softly. "The part that I had to play in order to survive out here on the seas. I forgot about that."

"That's a good look for you, Robin-san," Brook stated, "Would you let me see your…?"

But Robin held up her hands and caused her arms to grow out of Brooks's back and cover his mouth. "You don't want to finish that," she said, a little ill-tempered.

"It's… it's you!" Vivi stuttered in shock and fear.

"I just happened to run into your dear Mr. 8 a while back," memory Robin said coldly. "He didn't look so good."

Vivi's eyes turned dark as she yelled, "So _you_ killed Igaram!"

"What?!" Chopper screamed, looking at her in horror.

"Sorry, not quite," Robin answered him. "I was ordered by Crocodile to kill him and the princess, but I couldn't bring myself to do it. I've done a lot of things that I hated, but I just didn't have it in me to do it this time. I destroyed the ship, but I let Mr. 8 escape… apparently the injuries he got from the explosion weren't that serious. After a couple days of rest, he set sail…"

"Oh, so that's what happened," Nami said softly.

"It was something that I was used to doing," Robin confessed. It was all she knew. She had to always be ready to trade sides if something happened. By letting him live, she could've come to him for a favor later… that was the only thing that she could do in those days.

Her eyes turned sad as Nami put her hand on her shoulder, much like how Robin comforted her when they were watching Arlong. "The important thing is that you let him live. You did what you had to," she told her and Robin nodded.

"YOU! What are you doing on my ship and how did you get here?" Luffy demanded of past Robin, "Who are you?!"

"Answer him!" Vivi yelled, "What are you doing here, Miss All-Sunday!?"

"Miss All-Sunday?" Brook repeated softly.

"That was the name that I used for the four years I worked with Crocodile," she answered. "It was safer than my real name after all."

"So you know who she is?" Nami questioned. "Which of the numbered guys is she partners with?"

"Her partner is Mr. 0, the Boss," Vivi said gravely.

"Did he trust you?" Zoro suddenly asked as memory Nami screamed at that. "Crocodile I mean?"

Robin looked a little surprised by the question and thought it over. She remembered the words that he spoke to her in the tomb just as he impaled her with that hook… "I'm not sure he trusted anybody…" she said softly.

"She's a bad guy?" Luffy questioned her.

"She was the only one who knew the Boss' identity," Vivi explained as she continued to glare up at Robin, as if expecting her to start attacking at any moment. "That's how we found out who he actually is! By following her back to him!"

"Oh wow, they had to have been good to follow after you," Franky said impressed.

"Not quite," Robin told him, "I knew that they weren't who they said they were…" And as if her past self heard her words, she said, "To be accurate… I _allowed_ it."

"Oh, that makes much more sense," Brook said in understanding.

"So she's a good guy then," Luffy said, trying to understand this.

"I'm no saint," current Robin answered, "Far from it. But I don't like to think of myself as a bad guy either."

"Luffy's always had the mindset of a child," Nami sighed, "Either you're good or bad… and if you're not either, then he decides for you."

"I know you knew we were there!" Vivi yelled, "You're the one who told the boss what we knew! Weren't you?!"

"That's right," she answered in a bored tone.

"That's cold," Usopp said, looking at Robin. She was a real puzzle… even after sailing with her all this time, he still didn't know much what went on inside this woman's mind. But then again, he would probably be scared stiff if he did… if her dark sense of humor was anything to go by anyway…

"Alright so then she is bad!" Luffy finally concluded, pouting and Zoro told him to cut it out.

"You still haven't told us what it is you're doing here!?" Vivi yelled again and Robin was looking annoyed at the rudeness.

"Oh, right," she said coolly, "You were just so serious about the whole thing I couldn't help myself. A princess doing whatever it took to help her country while making herself an enemy of Baroque Works? The idea was just so… ridiculous."

"That's cruel, Robin-san," Brook said as the rest of the crew nodded.

But Vivi was looked enraged as she screamed out at the top of her lungs, "YOU KILLED HHHHHHIIIIIIIMMMMMM!"

The five Straw Hats had leapt into action. Sanji and Usopp were both up on their feet, Usopp with his slingshot loaded on one side, and Sanji on the other with a gun pointed directly at her head. Zoro was below them with Nami, both of them had weapons as well.

"Wow, you never used a gun before," current Zoro told the cook. "I thought that stupid chivalry of yours got in the way all the time."

"Damn it Moss Head, I wasn't trying to hurt her," Sanji said angrily as he puffed angrily on his cigarette. "I would never hurt a lady! I rather die than do something so horrible! The pistol wasn't even loaded… it was just for show. I wanted to protect Vivi… I didn't know what was going on, but it was the only thing I could do at the moment.

"I see, I'm glad to hear that, Sanji," Robin said and he smiled, almost falling over with joy that she spoke to him.

"We all might as well have had unloaded pistols for all the good it did us anyway," Nami added, watching the whole thing. Usopp and Sanji exchanged a brief conversation to what was going on, but Robin didn't look worried at all.

"I would really appreciate it if you would…" she said softly, and it all happened so quickly that they all missed seeing the hands appear and threw the two off the railing, "Stop pointing those at me?"

"Now you, are super cool, Robin," Franky said softly, watching them all looked freaked out.

"You mean…?" Zoro said gasped,

"She's eaten…" Nami went on before her staff and Zoro's sword were knocked out of their hands. And then Zoro finished, "A Devil Fruit?!"

The current Zoro felt a muscle going in his head at this. Robin wasn't even trying hard and she disarmed him so easily. He felt the need to kick his past self's ass for letting his guard down.

"But which one? What's her power!?" memory Nami cried out, now standing farther back with the others in front of her like shields. Sanji looked up to get a good look at her and hearts reappeared.

"Wow!" he gasped, as if he had never seen anything like her before, "now that I get a look… You're beautiful!"

"And you've grown even more beautiful," current Sanji swooned as he looked to their Robin, and she cracked another smile.

"How kind of you to say that," she said and he fell over, hearts now beating around his head like how one would see stars after they've been knocked out.

Past Robin chuckled a little at past Sanji's words before she looked back to Vivi. "Now there's no need to get so excited," she informed her, "You can all calm down. I haven't been given any orders to follow you here. I have no reason to fight you."

Holding up her hand, she used her powers to get hold of Luffy's straw hat—spinning it around on her hand in a bored way. "So, _you're_ the captain," she said, looking over at Luffy. "I've heard so much about you… Monkey D. Luffy."

"Robin? Were you trying to get on Luffy's bad side?" Zoro asked her. Luffy didn't let just anyone touched his treasured straw hat—that was a fast ticket to an ass-kicking.

"Well, I didn't realize how special it was to him," Robin answered, watching herself.

"I almost don't recognize you here, Robin-san," Brook said softly.

"I won't say you're wrong," she answered with a soft look in her eyes.

"Give me my hat back!" Luffy yelled enraged, shaking his fists at her. "You don't want me to come up there and take it!"

"You are a bad person! I demand you leave this instant!" past Usopp yelled from his hiding place behind the mast.

"Bad _luck_," memory Robin corrected as she put Luffy's hat on top of her own before going on, "Picking up a princess who Baroque Works already made up their mind to see eliminated… protected by a mere handful of pirates. But your luck gets even worse. Because of the direction your Log Pose is indicating… you see?"

"I have to agree, your odds don't look good at all," Franky said with a frown, "Especially since you're up against an entire organization and its leader is a Warlord."

"But we came out on top in the end," Sanji reminded him with a satisfied smirk.

Past Nami was looking at their Log in fear as Robin answered, "The name of the next island… is Little Garden."

"Little Garden?" Brook repeated. "It doesn't sound so bad."

"Don't let the innocent name fool you," Nami told him darkly. "That place is far from _little_!"

"We won't even need to lift a finger," memory Robin finished up, "You'll all be dead long before you reach Alabasta."

"You're making it sound like they were heading into the lion's den," Franky said in surprise, having never heard of such a place, "Man, was it really that dangerous?"

"Not really," Zoro and Sanji both admitted as Nami and Usopp gave them both annoyed looks.

"Well, you guys are monsters, so it wouldn't seem dangerous to you would it?" Nami demanded.

"But _we're_ normal," Usopp added, "We're made of delicate flesh and blood here! I can't count how many times we were almost eaten there!"

"Eaten?" Chopper repeated, sounding horrified.

"Come on, we'd been through a lot worse than that," Zoro told them.

"My hat! Give it to me!" Luffy screamed, obviously not caring about anything she said.

"Leave now evil… doer!" past Usopp yelled.

"Evil-doer?" past Zoro repeated, rolling his eye, "_Seriously_?"

"It was all I could think of at the moment!" Usopp defended.

"That's all a matter of opinion," Robin answered, not at all offended by it. She was used to far worse… and she was acting pretty obnoxious here.

"You don't think it's a little foolish allowing yourselves to be wiped out?" memory Robin asked as she threw back Luffy's hat and something over to Vivi. When she held it up, they saw that it was an Eternal Pose.

"An Eternal Pose?" Vivi whispered as she looked at it suspiciously.

"Is that for Alabasta?" Chopper asked, remembering seeing that Nami had kept her eye on an Eternal Pose after he had joined up… now that he thought about it, he was sure that she still kept it on the ship with them in case they ever wanted to return to Alabasta.

"Not quite," Robin answered him. "That was for a different island."

"Using that, you can just skip right past Little Garden without stopping," Robin answered her a little smugly. She also explained that this one island was near Alabasta and that none of their agents know that course so they shouldn't be followed.

"You know, I still don't get what you were up to here, Robin," Usopp said, but she didn't answer as she continued to watch with an unreadable expression on her face. "I mean… we were your enemies here but you went out of your way to warn us and even give us an Eternal Pose to an island near Alabasta? What were you up to?"

Robin looked over at him, as if she just realized that they were there. The truth was, they were just another back-up at the time. Aside from the World Government, she made many enemies in the past through her constant betrayal, the most dangerous of which was Crocodile. Their relationship was a strictly business-related one; he did not consider her a friend, only as a tool for his own ambitions. She never intended to awaken such a weapon for him. She always knew that he would betray her in the end, and here she tried to get in a few good points with them should something happen.

She knew that Crocodile would turn against her in the end…

"Were you really helping us here, Robin?" Nami asked her curiously.

"That depends on your point of view," she answered back. "I knew how dangerous Little Garden was, and who would be waiting there… as well as the fact that it takes a lot longer than a few days for the Log to reset. I didn't see any other way that you could've left that place safely. And this particular island is uninhabited. It lay just beyond Alabasta. It wouldn't have been too difficult to get there if you had taken it. But…?"

"But what?" Zoro asked her, suddenly wondering what would've happened had they listened to her.

"But the whole island also happens to have just been the remains produced from a creature called an Island-Eater," she answered. "I believe that you must have met it after you left Little Garden?"

They all blinked at her before Nami's eyes widen and she gasped out, a horrible realization came over her face. "You mean… that Giant Goldfish…? That island was just…?"

"Pretty much," Robin answered and Nami screamed out in horror at the thought and the other three men with her looked disgusted at the thought.

"But you didn't go that way," Robin answered, "I guess it was more of a test to see what you would do…"

She supposed that was true. As soon as she heard that Luffy had the middle initial D, she wanted to met him. And she had been pleasantly surprised… he was so like the last man with the D initial she met—and her heart ached a little painfully as she thought of Saul.

Luffy and Saul were very much alike and she could've sworn she was talking to him again when Luffy had refused the Eternal Pose. She knew that she liked this kid at once.

"What? So she's good after all?" past Nami suddenly asked as she looked up at her, trying to figure out what was going on.

But the gesture seemed to make Vivi angry as she yelled up, "Why are you giving this to us?"

"It's gotta be a trap," past Zoro said firmly, but Vivi was staring at the Pose with a wondering expression and they could tell that she was trying to figure out what to do.

"Oh, does it?" memory Robin asked as Luffy walked over to Vivi and grabbed the Eternal Pose out of her hands.

"Forget your thingy! We don't need it!" he yelled as he then crushed it until it broke into nothing but shards of glass and wood. Nami and Vivi were both looking horrified at what he had done.

"Now that I know where it was heading, I'm glad that he broke it," Nami whispered and Usopp nodded firmly by her side.

But Past Nami obviously didn't feel that way as she kicked him hard in the face and knocked him to the deck. "YOU JERK!" she screamed out, pointing up at Robin, "SHE JUST WENT OUT OF HER WAY TO SHOW US AN EASIER COURSE TO FOLLOW! MAYBE SHE ACTUALLY IS TRYING TO HELP US GET AWAY!"

But Luffy didn't react at all for a moment before he turned to look up at Robin and declared that she wasn't the one who decided where the ship goes.

"You know, he's right about that," current Robin smiled. "Don't know what I was thinking."

Both Luffy and past Robin looked at each other for a few extra long seconds—with Robin just looking at him, as if she was trying to figure out a complicated question, before she smiled. As if she had it answered.

"He reminded me of a dear friend I once had," Robin answered softly, the memory of her laughing with Saul came to her mind. "In fact, he was just like him."

"Really?" Chopper asked in surprise.

"Who?" Sanji asked curiously but she shook her head, not wishing to go any further.

"Well, that's too bad," memory Robin told them all casually as she walked along the upper deck, looking a little satisfied as she did so. It was as if she was glad that he had decided not to accept her offer.

Past Nami looked ready to yell again but Luffy answered, "She blew up that funny old man and he was nice so now I hate her."

Robin chuckled a little sadly at that. "Yes, I can't say that I blame him for that," she answered. Once again, she wasn't offended, she understood what happened and let it slide. That no longer matter here anyway.

"I'm sorry to hear that," past Robin stated looking back at him, "And I'm sorry you didn't accept my offer. If you survive… I hope we meet again."

"No," Luffy said childishly and she actually chuckled at that. Sanji was shaking his head at that—he had no manners whatsoever and yet the girls seem impressed by that? Just how does that rubber idiot do it?

Memory Robin gave them one last smile before she jumped ship and when they went running off to look, they found her leaving on the back of a giant sea turtle—heading back to Whiskey Peak.

"Yow! You sure seem to leave an impression no matter where you go," Franky told her.

Luffy watched after the turtle with bright eyes as Vivi fell to her knees in defeat. "That woman!" she cried out, "I don't have the slightest idea what's going through her head!"

"I think we all wonder that," Usopp whispered.

"Then there's no point in thinking about it is there?" past Nami asked irritably.

"There's someone on this boat who's just like that," past Zoro added as Usopp demanded to know what was going on and Sanji swooned over Vivi.

"Yeah, looks like you and Luffy have a little more in common than we first thought," Zoro whispered to her and she laughed a little. "You can never guess what's going on in your heads. Though one of you has mostly empty space in there."

After quickly explaining everything that was going on to Sanji and Usopp, their cook sighed and confessed that he was sorry that he missed all the fun. "But it sounds like there'll still be plenty of demand for my skills! No need to worry now that your sleeping prince has awoken my sweet, you'll be safe."

"What skills?" Zoro demanded as Sanji glared at him.

"I've got more skill in my little finger than you have in your whole body!" he growled back, sparks of anger flying between them. Past Usopp was stating the opposite. He was glad that he asleep, as past Sanji asked if Nami was jealous. She gave him a frosty look and gave him a definite no.

"Nami, you're so beautiful when you're cold," Sanji swooned.

"Shut up," she told him just as coldly.

"Excuse me?" Vivi asked hesitantly, and they all looked to her. She was standing there, looking truly terrible that she got them involved in this mess. "I'm sorry but… is it really alright that I'm on your ship? I'm just causing you a lot of trouble."

"Well, even if it wasn't, there's nothing that can be done about it now," Zoro stated, rolling his eye as he watched. "We said we'd get her home didn't we? What is she complaining about?"

"Guilt does that to people," Nami said, "And I'm sure that she must still feel bad after how she acted to us when they went after Laboon."

"While I am not happy with her for that," Brook said firmly, "I understand why she did. Hate the crime, not the criminal…"

"Well said," Sanji agreed with him.

Past Nami, meanwhile, looked put out as she came over and started poking Vivi's forehead. "It's a little late for apologizes don't you think? If you didn't want to cause us trouble you shouldn't have told us who you were!"

"True…" Franky said, shaking her head. How could she be such a ditz that she screamed out Crocodile's name after her big speech about how she couldn't tell them anything?

"Sorry for that," Vivi said.

"Isn't that right Luffy?!" Nami yelled and Luffy cheered, saying that he was hungry too—which didn't do anything to boost Vivi's confidence.

"How diluted is his hearing?" Usopp asked exasperatedly.

"Well, for now," past Zoro said, ending the fight, "At least we know where we're heading to."

"Little Garden, huh?" Sanji said.

"Remember what she said?" memory Usopp said worriedly, "Are we gonna die?"

"Big baby," Franky teased and Usopp gave him an annoyed look.

Luffy laughed. "Who knows?! Let's go pirates!"

"So that's how Vivi joined up with you!" Chopper said happily as the rest of the pirates cheered at hs words and the vision faded.

"Yeah, but technically, she didn't really _join_ us," Nami reminded him. "More like we were all hired to be her bodyguards."

"That's truly something SUPER you guys did for her though," Franky said, striking his pose. "After all, you didn't owe her anything. And she apparently was one of the bounty hunters who attacked you guys till they had to deal with Zoro here. But you still took her home and helped save her country?"

"That's the one downside to making friends," Zoro stated gruffly. "More people you gotta look out for."

The next memory was up in no time and they were all standing on the Merry's deck with Sanji passing out fruit drinks to them all and Luffy asking them if they wanted to get out the fishing gear.

"Fishing? Hell yeah, I'm in," memory Zoro said agreeably.

"Sounds good to me," past Usopp said eagerly, "I'll even make you one of my custom fishing rods! You'll love it!"

"Can you make one for me, Usopp?" Chopper asked excitedly.

"Sure," Usopp said happily, pointing his thumb at his chest. "I Usopp, the fishing master, will be more than happy to make one for you! You won't find fishing gear better anywhere! You'll be catching dozens of fish in no time at all"

"You're so awesome Usopp!" Chopper cheered as the rest of them all chuckled at it. They turned back to see that the men were all giving the duck, Carue, drink after fruit drink, even cheering him on with each one he took.

"This looks like a fun time," Robin smiled as memory Nami came out of the cabin with a couple more drinks and Vivi, who was standing up there, looked to her, saying loudly, "They're acting like idiots!"

"Maybe, but is that really such a bad thing?" Franky asked in surprise. "At least they're handling the fact that they're being hunted well. What? Does she want them all freaking out or something?"

"I guess so," Zoro stated coolly, having never thought about it before.

"That was always the one thing that really bugged me about her," Nami sighed, "She was such a worrywart. Always thinking the worst… it took her a long time before she was able to even trust us."

"Yeah, I remember when she kept trying to get all of us to climb the mountain after you guys after Luffy and Sanji took you to see the doctor," Usopp said, "It took me forever to calm her down."

"Climb a mountain to see a doctor?" Brook repeated in surprise.

"Later," Usopp said, holding up a hand, "I'm sure that you'll see it first-hand." Now that he thought of it, he always did wonder how the three of them were able to make it up that steep mountain…?

"But still," Nami went on, "That's not always a bad thing, I guess. It's nice to know that she cares… though it did get old real quick."

"She may have had a lot of guts, but she sure had a lot to learn about the world," Zoro added softly.

"Maybe this will help," past Nami said, holding out the drink to her and Vivi looked surprised at that. "Just relax," she went on, "These guys may go through their goofy phases but when things get rough, they get to work. Trust me, I should know."

"That's got to be the nicest thing you've said about us," Usopp informed her and she laughed back.

"Well, you guys do tend to get on my nerves several times a day," she reminded him.

"Sorry," Vivi said, calming down, "I don't know what's wrong with me. I'm getting worked up over nothing."

Nami just smiled. "This ship will put you at ease!" she reassured her, "You'll cheer up in no time!"

As she said that, Carue had drank too much and was looking ready to burst. The others were all laughing around him and even Vivi cracked a smile as Carue lay on his back, a fountain of juice erupting from his mouth. "Yeah," she said, "They're… funny…"

"Annoying is more what I was thinking, but we'll go with that," current Nami said, thinking it all over.

Soon though, Nami's words went to the test. A dolphin, the size of a Sea King had jumped out of the sea, and as if they had this all planned out, they all dropped what they were doing and got to work. Like a well-oiled machine, they got the sails ready and turned around—all of them knowing just what to do without being told. Soon they used the waves that the dolphin created to ride out and go at an amazing speed, all of them even enjoying the ride. Vivi stared at them all in amazement as Luffy asked Nami for direction when the excitement died down.

"Why is everything in the Grand Line so big?" Sanji asked himself.

"Here is the first time she's really beginning to understand that you can't do everything on your own," Usopp said softly.

"Huh?" Chopper asked, looking up at him.

"Vivi had a lot of trouble asking for help," Nami reminded him softly. "She thought that she could do everything by herself and not have to let others get hurt. That's a lesson I learned the hard way to, so I can relate," she added as she crouched down to speak to Chopper eye-to-eye. She smiled and said, "It's ok to ask for help from your friends, remember?"

Chopper smiled at her knowingly as memory Nami told them to sail portside and they turned without any other complaints. Just after that, they could see it in the distance. Through a light mist, they could make out a large island that looked like a tropical jungle.

"So this is Little Garden?" Brook asked animatedly, wondering just what they were going to see next.

"You know… it reminds me a great deal of Goa," Robin said, looking at the thick jungle trees and knew of the great beasts that lived here. It was very similar to the forests that Luffy grew up in.

"Now that you mention it, you're right," Zoro said lightly, "Luffy seemed right at home here."

"There's no mistake!" past Nami declared as she checked the Log Pose to see that the needle was pointing directly at the island. "Cactus Island and this one are definitely pulling against each other." She pointed at it and cried out, "Our next stop!"

Everyone cheered as they slowly approached. "This is it!" Luffy yelled, jumping up and down with zeal, "Our second island in the Grand Line!"

"Yeah, and one place I'll never forget," Usopp said, his eyes lighting up at the thought of seeing his masters again. Master Dorry and Brogy… they were his biggest inspirations to become a Brave Warrior and it was thanks to them that he decided to see Elbaf someday.

They followed a little river right into the island, the heat of this humid weather and thick plantlife already starting to make them all uncomfortable. But Luffy wasn't deterred at all as he said, "I can see why they call this place Little Garden!"

"He would, think about all those giant animals he fought when he was a kid," Usopp stated, thinking of that monster tiger…

"I can't, what's _little_ about it?" past Zoro asked him darkly

"Yeah, this island looks pretty harsh if you ask me! Why the cute name?" memory Nami added.

"Well, compared to its inhabitants, it _is_ little," current Sanji reminded them.

"Why? What lives here?" Brook asked as the memory faded there.

"Two great warriors," Usopp said and Chopper's eyes lit up.

"Really?" he asked in awe.

"Yeah," Usopp said, beaming widely. "The great warriors Dorry and Brogy! They had been battling it out on this island for the last hundred years in a duel to the death!"

"What?! A hundred years?!" Brook cried out in amazement as Chopper let out a cry of wonder.

"They can't be human," Franky said, thinking that over. "Are you telling stories again?"

"This time he's not," Nami interrupted as she looked around at the dark fields and wondered when the next memory was coming up. "And they weren't human… they were…"

But before she could tell them the big secret, the memory reappeared and they were standing next to a shallow creek where Luffy had come running up to with Vivi riding Carue. Luffy had skidded to a stop and went over to the water, something catching his eye.

"Hey, what's the matter?" Vivi asked, wondering why he had stopped.

"Over here! Check it out!" Luffy called out excitedly as he picked up something from the water. "It's a shellfish that looks like a squid!" He held it up to her as she got off her duck to get a closer look, "Shell-squid fish!" he finished proudly.

"What is that?" Brook asked and they all looked in to see that Luffy was right, it did look like a squid and a shellfish together.

"Weird," Franky said, pulling up his sunglasses to get a look at it. "Never seen anything like that before."

"Its actual name is an aminoid," Robin said smiling, this place was an archeologists dream come true. Real live creatures that pre-date mankind?

"How strange," Vivi said, frowning as she looked at it, "It sorta resembles an aminoid…?"

"Cool huh?" Luffy asked and they heard the ground shaking… the sounds of giant footsteps. They all looked around, with Chopper asking if it was an earthquake, but they all soon saw what it was with their own eyes.

"That's weird!" Luffy yelled, looking up to see the giant creature overhead, "What's a Sea King doing on land?!"

"That's because it's not a Sea King," Robin said smiling as the creature turned its long neck to look over at them. And it looked remarkably like a…

Franky, Brook, and Chopper all began to scream as Vivi screamed out what they all knew it was. "A DINOSAUR!"

"AWESOME!" Luffy screamed as Vivi and Carue could only yell in terror.

**(So? How about it? I hope that I did the scene of Brook seeing Laboon again for the first time in fifty years justice, as well as the fighting with Luffy and Zoro. Personally, I never really liked that part, so I left out the beginning of it, but I hope that's ok. As for the explanation to why Luffy believed Nami and not Zoro, I thought it was pretty good. Also, I never really liked Vivi, so there may be some bashing in the future. But if there is, it's only a little a bit, so I hope that you don't mind. And for those of you who have been asking me, yes, next chapter will be getting to Drum Island. I hope you enjoyed this chapter.)**


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